Once Upon a Time In Venice
by BlahBlah112
Summary: A loved-one's death is not always easy to deal with, something young assassin Alessandra must learn first hand. After a grievous accident she is sent to Venice where she learns that death is not an end, but a whole new beginning.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: Okay, so you know I don't own assassins creed or any of it's characters. I just own my original characters (which doesn't count any of the historical characters). I'm not re-writing this so it applies t all of the chapters in this story. I must add also that this story is completely historically inaccurate. Sorry to all you history fans but it's impossible to get any info on the time.**

**Also, I must warn you that there is bad language from the beginning of this story! I'm not entirely sure if I should up my rating but tell me if I should or otherwise my story could be deleted!!**

**Hi! ^_^ So I'm new on this scene and haven't written a fanfic before, so please be kind to me in your reviews!(but still criticise). Of course if I'd made any mistakes please tell me and I'll fix them! Hopefully you'll enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it. Here goes!**

************

The world was a blur; it was near impossible to make out where she was. Her head throbbed in pain and her side felt wet and cold. She put her hand to her side and grimaced as pain shot through her entire body. It felt like being stabbed by a thousand daggers. She tried to see what was causing the pain, but her vision was still too blurry. All she could see was the white of her uniform, and the red of the blood.

_ "Damn, how did I get here?"_

She sat up slowly and squinted, trying to see what all the moving blobs were. She saw a white blob move closer to her with each passing second. Her heart began to race. What is it?_ Who_ is it?

She blinked and her vision slowly began to clear up. She saw who the blob was and sighed in relief. He smiled reassuringly and picked her up. She felt the pain in her side intensify, but she ignored it, she was safe now.

"Where are we?" She croaked, but she only saw his lips moving, no sound coming from them. She tried to lift her hands to her head but they wouldn't move. Her mind screamed in fear and she began to cry uncontrollably. She shook her head

"I can't hear yo-"

The pain in her head exploded and she fell from his arms. She saw the floor become closer and closer and then her whole body ached unbearably. She screamed as the world became blurry again. She shouted but he was gone again. Her breathing picked up and she began to panic. She started to scream,

"Help me! PLEASE!" The world began to fade away and she no longer tried to scream for help, for she couldn't.

_"I am going to die...."_

Then, as the last remnants of colour faded from her vision she heard a familiar sound, a familiar voice, calling her. She couldn't reply, even though she'd give the world to be able to.

_"I'm coming Orlando." _She thought tragically. Her soul burnt with sadness and her mind wailed in bitter remorse.

Then, the fear set in.

_'No, I don't want to die!'_

It gripped her whole being, she felt like a different person. She felt weak and defenceless. She had gone from hunter to hunted. If she was able to cry, she would howl for hours in painful agony. Nothing had ever felt like this before, the terror was unbearable.

Her breathing picked up for a moment before slowly dying down until it was so faint that she was inches from death.

She groaned and slipped unwillingly into a deep slumber.

* * * * * * * *

**2 Months Ago**

Alessandra gritted her teeth. She cursed herself for such weakness.

_"I am '_ _La Tigre Di Venezia.' I am the one who faces the most evil_ _and corrupt people of Italy's cities. I stand above them as they pathetically plead for their lives. I tell them that they are a curse, a plague and that I have come to end their miserable existence. I make the final blow, piercing flesh and drawing blood. I watch them die, and I smile..._

_And I escape.... every time...._

_And yet..."_

She sat on the bridge mumbling to herself, getting strange looks from passing nobility, who frequently insulted her, clearly not showing any decency. She scoffed at them and continued to wallow in self-pity. She probably should have picked a better part of town than the rich district, considering her foul mood.

She huffed and looked over the canal. The water glistened with moonlight, it was calming. Her calm was interrupted by a couple staggering drunkenly towards her. She sighed, what a long night it was going to be.

The girl was pretty, with dark brown hair and stunning brown eyes. She felt a sting of inadequacy shoot through her stomach. Even though she acts like it doesn't matter, she cared more than she'd like to admit. It was the plight that came with being a woman.

The couple neared her and the girl staggered and fell into the canal, causing a large splash. Alessandra gasped and ran to the canal. She grabbed the woman's arm and dragged her out of the ice cold water.

"Are you okay?" She asked the girl nervously.

"Yeah, I'm f-... I'm f-f-f" She could hardly finish her sentence she was so drunk.

Alessandra turned to her companion angrily. The idiot just watched the girl fall into the canal. He did nothing. She glared at him, her nostrils flaring and her fists clenched so tight her skin was pure white. He noticed her expression and cocked his head to the side. He smiled cheekily.

For a single moment, Alessandra was mesmerised. He was stunning. He had wavy black hair and deep blue eyes. She felt like he was looking through her soul. She was completely-

"Hey beautiful," He was slurring his words and spitting a lot. She grimaced at the thought of what the girl was getting herself into.

"Wanna ditch this whore and come with me, we could have a good time." He smiled perversely.

"What?" Her eye twitched in anger.

"I s-s-said, lets ditch-"

Alessandra lost it. She punched him so hard he sprawled all the way across the street. She stomped to where he was lying and flexed her right hand. A small blade came shooting out of her sleeved and she squeezed it to his neck, causing it to break his skin ever-so-slightly. Some warm blood flowed down his neck turning his white collar crimson. She smiled. She relished at the cool metal pressing against her wrist. It was sort-of therapeutic, in a sick way.

She heard a strange sound, like metal clinking.

_'Not just metal'_, she thought._ 'Armour'_

Then, the sound of clinking armour grew louder and louder. It was the guards on their nightly partol.

"Shit!" She spat and ran around the corner into her allies' district leaving the bleeding noble man lying helplessly on the street. She sprinted swiftly through the shadowy alleyways despite the fact it was so dark. She nodded to the group of burly-looking men and they ran toward where the guards and the obnoxious man were. It looked like her fun was over tonight.

If you can call it fun....

This wasn't the first time that this kind of thing had happened. She hated the nobility and was thankful that she never fit in with them. When she first came to Venice Orlando said that she would fit right in. But, she didn't. She found them to be barbaric, selfish, revolting, and idiotic to say the least. And worst of all she was told that she had to wear dresses and try to find a suitable husband. Despite her downfalls, being a woman and all, she wanted no such thing.

What kind of woman did they think she was? A slave? A whore?

Besides, she'd probably have to marry an unbearable noble-man and that would be a death sentence all on its own. She didn't want to become an aimless servant for a man with nothing worthy to his name but a large investment of money, which wouldn't protect him if she were to loose her temper with him.

But, what's to say killing them is a bad thing? She never believed that the nobility served any purpose in the world; they were just there to make sure that everyone else suffered. Of course they weren't all like that.

_"No" _she thought, _"just most of them."_ She smiled and looked into the sky. A thought occurred to her.

_Orlando_...

She missed him more than she had ever missed anyone before. He had been dead for four months and she still cried herself to sleep each night. Her eyes stung with tears. She sniffled and wiped her eyes with her hand. She sat on the edge of a small canal bridge, looked longingly into the dark sky and sighed.

"I miss you buddy."

She wished every day that he would turn up and admit it was all part of an assassination plot- so he could remain anonymous- and she would be happy again. She wished that she didn't abandon him at the end. She wished that she never-

She jumped as she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to see it was Luzio. He smiled sadly and sat beside her.

"Trouble had a way of finding you." He said sardonically. She looked at him and sighed.

"You heard about that huh?" He nodded. Her previous acts with that noble couple would be travelling the whole city in a matter of days. Florentines were such gossipers.

She frowned and he immediately caught on, to her dismay. She wasn't the one to talk about her feelings. Sometimes, she (and the other assassins) thinks she should have been born a man.

"You miss him?" He asked hesitantly. She knew exactly what he meant. He didn't want her to feel like he was being intrusive; she was fragile enough already. To his relief, she just looked at him and feigned a smile. But he could see the pain in her eyes.

She nodded and burst into tears. He held her close to him and let her cry into his shoulder. He was lost for words. She used to be so happy and spirited and now, she was just an empty shell.

And worst of all, he feared she would never recover.

* * * * * * * *

Ezio Auditore Di Firenze was a lady's man. He knew he was good-looking (all of the Auditore men were infamous for their looks) so he used it to his advantage. _It isn't a crime!_ He would always say in his defense when other men complained to him about his insatiable flirting. He didn't care much that every other man in Florence despised him; he was the one getting the women. Besides, as far as he was concerned they could go fuc-

"Ezio!" He heard a familiar voice call. He turned to see his mother standing angrily at his bedroom door. She was a very beautiful woman for her age. She seamed to look much younger than she really was. But, then again, she did marry his father when she was fifteen and he was twenty nine. He shuddered at the thought. He was almost her whole lifetime older. He didn't want to marry a woman who was anything less than ten years younger than him, he knew he wouldn't have anything in common with her. He had voiced his opinion many times to this father who told him that his opinion would soon change. Of course, being a stubborn son he disagreed with most of his father's ideas.

He snapped out of his thoughts when his mother cleared her throat disapprovingly. She pointed at the space beside him in the bed, which was occupied by a very hung-over and most likely naked woman. He smiled and shrugged his shoulders.

"I'm sorry Mama, it's both a blessing _and_ a curse." She laughed merrily, her laugh like sweet music. She then took a deep breath and furrowed her eyebrows in displeasure. Ezio grimaced, waiting for a scolding.

"Have her out by twelve. But not before giving her breakfast!" She said and Ezio shouted in victory,

"Yes! Thank you Mama!" She scoffed at the comment and walked down the stairs to the dining room. He knew she disapproved of his activities but he wasn't a little boy anymore, as much as she wanted him to be. He felt the sheets ruffle beside him.

He turned to the woman who was now waking up. Her eyes fluttered open and she smiled dreamily at him. He smiled back.

"Good morning Ezio." She sad seductively which sent a shiver down his spine. He opened his mouth to return the favour. Nothing came out.

_"Shit."_ He thought.

_"I can't remember her name. Was it Adrianna or Adelina_?" He searched his mind desperately trying to remember. He definitely must write them down from now on, he thought, _before_ he gets senselessly drunk. He was sure it began with A. He gritted his teeth and took a chance.

"Good morning… Adrianna." It ended up sounding like a question rather than a statement. Ezio waited, each second killing him. Did he get her name right? Then, he got his answer.

Her face turned quickly from happy to murderously angry. Then he remembered,

_"That was her sister's name…"_ Ezio gulped, this wasn't good. He smiled and tried to calm her.

"So, honey-"

"Don't even think about calling me that! You vile piece of… of worthless shi-"

"Hey! Calm the hell down!" They began to shout at one another loud enough for people passing on the street below to hear, not to mention everyone in the house. But they were used to this after at leas five years of the same behaviour.

She threw what she could find at Ezio while breaking into tears.

"Why would you use me like this, don't you know how _fragile_ women are?" She grabbed a metal candleholder and threw it at Ezio's head. He yelped in pain and fell back into his dresser, while cursing loudly. He fell on the floor in a concussion while she dressed speedily and ran out of the room. He sighed and rubbed the red patch that was forming on his head.

"Women."

* * * * * * *

"Men." She exclaimed exhausted. The whole assassin community was in celebration (what is meant by celebration is: they got blindly drunk) of the assassination of a group of very powerful Templars. But, she had already realized that it wouldn't take much to replace them – with all the blood hungry men ready to exterminate the assassins – they always did.

She never drank alcohol, she didn't want to forsake her senses so every time this happened- which wasn't all too often- she and a few other brave souls kept guard to make sure enemies didn't strike during the festivities. She had just returned to get a glass of water when all the drunken fools began singing and trying to dance with her. She shuddered.

_"I hate dancing."_

She had finally been given the best lookout, the roof. She told them that she would gladly take the rest of her shifts on the roof, if only to avoid the noise.

She watched the moonlight illuminate the roves of the small houses and enormous mansions of Florence. She watched the cathedral as it towered majestically over the city. She had wished this was the week of the festival, so that the fireworks would light up the sky. It was the first thing she saw when she came to Florence and she had been awestruck ever since.

She smiled at all the memories that filled her mind from the festivals. The colours, the lights, the smiles and of course the music. She closed her eyes and imagined how it felt to be there. It had been so long.

Time was passing slowly that night. After reminiscing she has spent most of her time watching a cat hunting a mouse along the roofs and across the street. It made her think of exactly what killing people would bring to the world. What benefit would it give society and-

_"Wait." _She thought,_ "What am I talking about?"_

She was, although, very different after Orlando died, she just wanted to move on, but it seamed all too difficult. She had begun to question the creed and every belief she had ever had, much to her fellow assassin's displeasure.

She stared into the sky for what seamed like fifteen minutes when something felt different. Her neck started to feel hot and itchy. She put her hand to it and felt that the skin was lumpy and sore. _"I must be getting a fever of some sort."_ She thought.

She grimaced and stood up. She walked over to the edge of the roof to see if any other assassins were passing by. She needed to get another drink of water, to keep her cool for the night. She used the secret whistle to signal danger and Marco jogged around the corner in the street below. He looked up and shouted to her,

"What's wrong? Do you see someone?" She shook her head.

"No, I just need to get some more water, I think I have a-" Her head started to feel hot and heavy. She started to sway dangerously forward and backward. Marco called out nervously,

"Alessandra? Are you okay?" But she couldn't hear him. Her head was buzzing and her limbs were falling weaker each second. She mumbled something incoherent and stumbled over the side of the roof.

_"Holy Mother of God!"_ Marco thought and rushed to catch her, but he was too late.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I was anxious to upload the second chapter even though I wasn't supposed to until the weekend!! I hope that is good news for some of you!**

**I am overjoyed that someone like my story, which means that my creative juices will last a bit longer!!**

**I hope this is as good as the previous chapter! I think it might just be a little shorter than the last one.**

**The plot thickens.....**

The marketplace was filled with the aroma of spices and foods from parts of the world so distant that he could only imagine what they were like. The whole city was bustling and the streets were bursting with every sort of person one could think of. He could hear the merchants calling out to passer-bys telling them that they had the best offers and the best merchandise. He walked past most of the stalls despite their desperate calling. His clothes were a dead give-away that he had money to spend, so the merchants swarmed around him like flies around a carcass. He stopped at a stall and a familiar face smiled at him. He walked up to Ezio and shook his hand.

"Ezio, how are you, my friend? Where is that lovely lady- Anna - you were with last night?"

Ezio's face lit up as if he had discovered something important. The merchant's face screwed up in confusion and he sighed.

"How is it that you remember her name and I don't?" He asked exasperated. The merchant smiled and patted his shoulder.

"If I had that much alcohol in me I don't think I'd be alive this morning!" He said happily and Ezio chuckled. Of course, he had forgot about all the drinking. His parents scolded him for drinking so much, that no suitable women would ever marry him, but he didn't care. Marriage wasn't really his plan, he like being single. Although, he didn't really know what it was like to be in a relationship either. It was as if he was still a young boy, grimacing at the thought of marriage.

"So, Lorenzo," he said to the merchant, "Do you have any new goods for me?" The merchant smiled and went into the tent behind his stall. Ezio's eyes drifted away from the stall as he watched the crowds move around. A girl walked around the corner and caught his attention (that wasn't unusual!). She was... different. Her skin was paler than most and her hair was a strange burgundy colour. Her eyes were very pale blue, so much so that they were almost white. She caught sight of Ezio looking at her and he smiled. She looked behind her and ran hurriedly around the corner. Just as she disappeared, guards came marching around the corner. She was a thief, or worse, an assassin - the scum of the city according to Ezio. He turned back to the stall to see the merchant had still not come back out, what was taking him so long?

Soon after the merchant emerged with a small dark wooden box. He handed it to Ezio, it was heavier than he expected it to be. It smelt of spices and perfume, more than likely from the other objects it travelled with. There was a lily carved into the lid, the proud symbol of Florence. Ezio ran his hand over the carving and smiled, he knew with such a pretty box, what was inside would be exquisite.

The merchant opened the box gingerly and turned it to show Ezio what was inside. He looked in and saw it was a small necklace. He picked it up and marvelled at the craftsmanship.

"I got it from an arabian man who said it had been in his family since the crusades, now that I think of it, he reminded me of you." The merchant said. Ezio wasn't really listening. He was entranced by the pendant.

The necklace itself was composed of soft red ribbon tied to a beautiful pendant in the shape of a teardrop with something engraved onto the metal. Ezio squinted to read it, it was in some strange language. The merchant leaned in and smiled again,

"He told me the engraving means, _'Nothing is true and everything is permitted'_" Ezio smiled, it was a good saying. Little did he know the real meaning of the phrase. Unfortunately, he would soon find out.

******

Marco paced impatiently around the halls outside the door of the infirmary. His hand were sweaty and shaking profusely from the shock of it all. His mind traced over the events of the previous night.

_He was walking quietly around the alleyways around the bureau, it was calm and peaceful, the way he liked it. He met only a few passing thieves and bandits which made his job so much easier, they wouldn't give him trouble like normal citizens. Besides, citizens tended to avoid the area surrounding the bureau because of all the thieves and thugs, who had over the years, become valuable allies to the assassins. He sighed and looked into the sky._

_"Still before midnight." He sighed, he hated long shifts like this but considering his allergy to alcohol, he had no choice but to watch over the bureau. _

_He was snapped out of his thoughts by a very weak whistle. He recognised the sound instantly, there was trouble brewing._

_He unsheathed his sword in one quick fluid movement and ran for where he heard the sound. He ran around the corner and saw where it came from, it was Alessandra. _

_There seamed to be no sign of trouble._

_"What's wrong?" He asked warily, "Do you see someone?" She shook her head. _

"_No, I just need to get some more water, I think I have a-"She replied, her voice sounding very weak. He started to feel very nervous about the whole situation._

"_Alessandra? Are you okay?" He tried to see what was wrong when she began to sway forwards and backwards. His eyes widened and he shouted to her, with no reply._

_He ran maniacally towards the wall, ready to climb up to her before she hurt herself. She swayed forward and her feet fell from under her. _

_"No!" He shrieked as her limb body plummeted to the ground. She hit the ground hard and he swore he heard a loud cracking sound. He hoped he was just imagining it._

_He ran to her and turned her over on her back, she was unconscious._

_"Alessandra? Can you hear me?" He shook her lightly with no reply. He put his hand over her mouth, she was breathing. He sighed in relief and picked her up._

_He ran speedily through the winding halls of the bureau until he reached the infirmary. He brought her in and the nurses began to treat her immediately. He was angry that he wasn't allowed to stay inside. They told him that they would only let him in if she requested, which he scoffed at. How could she request if she was out cold?_

"What a stupid rule" He thought out loud as he heard footsteps coming up the hall, it was Luzio. He looked a him apologetically.

"I am sorry brother, but the Master has requested that you participate in a mission today. I know you want to be there when she wakes, but he assures you that she will still be asleep when you return." Marco sighed and nodded. Alessandra was hurt pretty bad so the Master was right. Marco just wished he wasn't.

"Good. Follow me." Luzio said excitedly.

Luzio led Marco to the Master's room. It was a very plain room except for the exquisite high ceiling. Thick pillars travelled up the full height of the wall converging at the centre of the dome at the top of the roof. The pillars were decorated with carvings of flowers and angels. Marco marvelled at it's beauty. It was magnificent.

He looked down from the ceiling to see a man standing in front of him. He didn't look familiar, but he was definitely an assassin (Marco knew almost all the assassins in the biggest Italian cities. There weren't that many after all). The man walked up to Marco. He was quite handsome with a scar on his mouth. He had deep brown eyes and messy dark brown hair. He cocked his head to the side and smiled. He put out his hand,

"Hello Marco, I have heard many good things about you." Marco took his hand and shook it.

"My name is Giovanni." He didn't use his surname, something Marco had become used to in all his years of being an assassin. Although, he looked down at the man's hands as he shook his and noticed that he was wearing a family ring.

"Auditore..." He mumbled and Giovanni's muscles stiffened. He obviously didn't want his second name to be used. He leaned in to Marco's ear and whispered threateningly.

"Speak that word aloud again and I will sever you head from your body." Marco inhaled nervously and he nodded in compliance. Giovanni leaned back and smiled as if they had just shared a joke. He certainly was a strange man.

"If you men do not mind, I would like to speak with the Master before we are briefed on our target." He pointed mannerly to the door and bowed graciously to Marco and Luzio.

"Please, the Master said, " This will only take a minute." He threw Giovanni a strange look, something Marco couldn't place.

"Of course." Luzio replied and pulled Marco by the shoulders out of the room. When they had reached the door Marco had snapped out of his daydream and realised what was happening.

"Hey! Stop! I want to hear what he was going to say." Marco shouted and Luzio put his hand roughly over Marco's mouth.

"Be quiet you fool! I noticed that look the Master gave Giovanni too!" He let go of Marco's mouth.

"So?" Marco asked exasperatedly.

"So!" Luzio replied imitating Marco, "We will eavesdrop on them." Marco smiled and ran for the stairs.

They crept over the top of the Master's room through a small window in the wall (used for ventilation) and crouched on the wooden beams high up in the ceiling. They listened to the heated debate between the Master and Giovanni.

"But master, I have a wife! A son and a daughter! I do not want to jeopardise their safety!" Giovanni argued to the Master, who looked as if none of this mattered.

"Do you not trust in your abilities Giovanni? Do you not think that you will be able to complete your mission without being noticed?" He posed the question to Giovanni who was becoming more infuriated every second.

"That is not the problem, I told you I had given up this life once my son was born. And you _promised_ me that I would never hear of you again, That you would never come knocking for one more mission!" Giovanni was shouting very loudly now and Marco was worried that the Master wouldn't take it too kindly and have Giovanni killed for treachery even if he had done no such thing. The Master was, after all, very temperamental.

"Giovanni, I had no other choice but to ask you. This mission requires the best of assassins and my first choice was hospitalised after an accident! I did not have any other assassin good enough for the job." The Master remained ever-calm as he spoke, not even raising his voice. Marco felt a twinge of jealously as he spoke of how no one except Alessandra was good enough. He heard Luzio scoff at the comment, which didn't surprise Marco in the least. Luzio always thought himself the best, even if he didn't admit it. It was written all over his face.

"How old is your son, Giovanni?" The Master asked out of the blue. Giovanni's face screwed up in frustration but he contained it with a deep exasperated sigh.

"My son is nineteen." Giovanni replied monotonously. The Master smiled and laced his fingers together and leaned back in his chair. He looked like he was considering something and smiled evilly. Giovanni anticipated what he was thinking and was quick to become angry again.

"No!" he shouted, which only proved to enhance the Master's smirk. "No way! Ezio will never become an assassin!" He shouted louder than he had since they began eavesdropping. It made Marco nervous, what if they were discovered? They would surely be dead.

"Ezio is his name then?" He asked absent-mindedly and Giovanni rubbed his forehead trying to calm himself down. The Master looked at Giovanni with a twinkle in his eye which could only mean one thing, he had a plan.

"Giovanni," He spoke calmly, " I will make you a deal." Giovanni nodded hesitantly and walked closer to the Master's desk.

"I will insure the safety of your family if you do this mission for me." Giovanni looked deep in though as if trying to see if there were any ways the Master could turn the deal over and fool him. He nodded to himself, satisfied that the deal was a fair one. The Master leaned forward, anxious to hear Giovanni's answer.

"Okay Master, I will do this one mission." The Master smiled in victory and Giovanni walked out of the room. He stopped at the door and spoke quickly, the defeat palpable in his voice.

"I will return at nightfall tomorrow. Have my equipment ready." The Master's smiled widened and he leaned back triumphantly in the chair. Luzio tapped Marco's shoulder and pointed at the way in which they entered from, signalling it was time to leave. Marco was in no was objective, he didn't want the Master to see them. They turned and walked along the beams toward the window in the wall they came thorough when they hear a voice from below.

"Where do you think you are going?" Marco froze. That voice.

It was the Master.

There was silence for a moment while Marco and Luzio remained frozen in one position on the beams. Then, a jolly laugh came from down below them. They looked down and the Master was chuckling joyfully at them.

"Hurry down boys. " He said between laughs, "I have a job for you."

******

Ezio walked awkwardly down the stairs into the kitchen. he was wearing only his underwear which caused the maids in the kitchen to blush and in some cases, leave the kitchen hurriedly. This would have been fun for Ezio on any other occasion, except for this one.

He rubbed his head and moaned in pain. There was a bruise forming there already. It had only been about ten minutes since that crazy woman had hit him, he thought, and he was already black and blue. He grunted,

"Damn woman!" He shouted, giving one of the maids a shock. He ignored her distressed whimper completely.

Manners weren't his strong point.

He walked into the dining room and called out loudly like a sulking child,

"Papa?" There was no answer. The dining room was empty. His hand dropped from his head as he scanned the room for his father. He walked into the foyer and called out again.

No answer.

Then, the front door flung open and an angry looking Giovanni Auditore came stamping in.

"How dare he!" He shouted to himself. Ezio stood there shocked at how angry his father was. He hesitated to say anything.

"Papa?" He asked meekly and Giovanni looked up at him. He looked shocked for a split second before smiling. He walked up to Ezio and hugged him. Ezio pushed him away and raised his eyebrow curiously at him.

"What's the matter?" He asked worriedly. Giovanni smiled reassuringly and patted his shoulder lightly.

"Nothing much, it's really quite trivial." His sheepish grin widened as he explained himself.

"An idiot merchant tried to overcharge me, that's all." He lied. It wasn't very convincing but Ezio wasn't going to pry further.

_'He probably lost a card game.'_ He thought dryly. His father was a horrible gambler and wasn't quick to admit it. Although, he had never seen his father gamble and he always refused to play each time his family held a dinner party. He used to go out almost each night and return home after a game with scratches and bruises, most likely, Ezio thought, after getting into brawls over money. His mother always pleaded him to stay home, she sometimes cried, which made Ezio think there was more to this than just gambling.

"I will talk with you later son. But now, I must speak with your mother." Ezio nodded and Giovanni left the room hastily, looking for his mother.

"Abrianna?" Giovanni called out lovingly to his wife, whom he had been married to for a long time. He loved her and they shared a very rare marriage, in which both partners loved each other equally. He still remembered how he used to come in her bedroom window without her parents noticing. Being a young (he was twenty nine) assassin, he was still fervently involved in the brotherhood but desperately wanted to quit and marry Abrianna before her suitor, Dante did. After a 'special' night together, Abrianna became pregnant with Giovanni's child. Eventually, her pregnancy and their relationship was discovered by her father who was, strangely, overjoyed to see his daughter was in love with such a fine husband and so he gave them his blessings. It was a fairy-tale love, if only it lasted for a few more years.

He knew that he had very little time left. He had seen the flaw in the Master's deal.

He had promised his family's safety, but not his.

Which meant only one thing.

He was going to die, sooner or later.

He watched his wife break into tears in front of him as he explained his situation. He felt strong burning sadness at the thought of never seeing his son and daughter marry. Tears welled up in his eyes and he spent the night crying with his wife. He couldn't even bare to see his children. He felt he was betraying them by doing this mission. What choice did he have? He knew the Master wouldn't let hi go until he agreed, but he also knew how empty the Master's promises were. So, he had to take a chance.

He had a rough night, spent mostly awake on the brink of tears.

He woke to a blurry world.

His eyes were sore form the crying and his head hurt. He sat up and rubbed his eyes, something he knew wouldn't help, but he did it anyway. He stood up and walked to the sink at the right hand side of the room. He looked at his reflection in the mirror and grimaced.

He wasn't the man he used to be.

His once brilliant honey eyes were faded and dark, filled with sorrow and regret. His skin was dry and cracked and had gone from a beautiful tan to a grey-ish shade that reminded him of his own father. He sighed, the bags under his eyes were getting deeper by the day.

Then, a thought occurred to him.

_'This could be the last day of my life.'_ His eyes widened and he immediately wondered why he wasn't spending it with his children. He was done moping around.

It was time to set things right.

******

Today was outré to say the least.

Papa was almost too happy to spend the day with me, something he never really did. Even when I was a young boy, he always preferred to go on business trip than to admire how amazing my mud cakes were (and believe me, they were fantastic). I had become used to it though. But now, I felt awkward when I was with him. Even though he was my father, I knew very little about him. It was like spending the day with a total stranger who treated you like it was their last day alive on the earth.

How weird!

He took me to the most expensive stalls and told me to but whatever I wanted. He didn't scold me for flirting either, in fact, he flirted more than I did! And he used the worst lines on the girls (not even women, because they were v_ery _young_)_, and they fell for it!

That was just plain disturbing.

My father was beating me at my own game!

We arrived home and asked papa if he wanted to play cards with me, but he refused. He had changed from frighteningly happy to solemn and depressing. His moods were starting to unnerve me. I had to know why he was being this way.

"Papa. Tell me straight, what the hell is going on?" I asked exasperated. He looked at me with doubt written all over his face. I knew now that it was more than just gambling. He sighed and put his hand on my shoulder.

"I will tell you tomorrow. Now, I have some business to attend to." His eyes were full of pain as he said it, as if I was missing out on some big detail. He turned away and trudged to the door silently. He opened it and a loud creak broke the silence that had descended upon the house. I grimaced as the sound cut through my head. He turned before walking out into the street and smiled at me. It was the most genuine smile I had even seen on his face. I couldn't help but smile back.

He inhaled deeply and said my name lovingly.

"Ezio. I had so much fun today" I nodded in agreement, it did become fun after the whole flirting incident was over and done with.

"I did too papa. Maybe we could do it again tomorrow." replied happily.

He grimaced and I could swear I saw tears in his eyes.

He closed the door quietly and let me standing there wondering what in God's name was happening.

And I wouldn't find out for another two weeks.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: The chapter I tried tp upload failed so I tried a few different things and finally got it to work!**

**This is pretty much a filler chapter so bear with me.**

**Thanks so much for reviews and keep it up please!**

**Here we go....**

"Can you do that?" the Master asked eagerly. They nodded and he mumbled something incoherent, something about _'...stupid idiot is late'_.

"Okay." He said loudly, "Tell me the plan so?" He raised his eyebrows at them, challenging them to be wrong.

"First, we infiltrate the dinner party and find Ermanno Bugiardini." Marco replied hastily.

"Then, we set up the fireworks around the dinner hall." Luzio continued.

"And finally, when Giovanni gives the signal, we light them and flee the building as the bastard is given his due reward." Marco said coldly, which showed the side of him that earned him the name _Lupo Di Firenze_. He had acquired such a name after many people witnessed him killing only on the full moon. It was something he was proud of, he was infamous, and that was something he considered to be an achievement. Of course, to his dismay, he wasn't the only one with a nickname. Alessandra had been called _La Tigre Di Venezia _because of her ruthlessness. Even Luzio had a nickname, the other assassins called him _Stallone_ because of his pride. Marco guessed while Alessandra was proud of her name, Luzio wasn't, he fervently refuses to believe he is proud.

"Okay, the equipment is in the armoury. Meet Giovanni at the cathedral at eight. Don't be late." They nodded and the Master dismissed them.

Marco walked nervously down the hall to check if the nurses would let him see Alessandra before he went on his mission. He turned the corner to see that the door was open and light from the room was pouring into the hall. He smiled and walked in.

He gasped.

The bed was empty. There were no bloodstains on the floor or on the sheets. there was nothing to suggest this room had ever been used before. he walked over to the wardrobe and opened it slowly. It was empty

Luzio walked in to the room.

"Stop fooling around Marco, we have to go now or we won't be ready in time!' He walked behind him and pushed Marco out of the room hastily, oblivious to the look of utter shock plastered on his face.

To be honest, Luzio didn't really care all that much.

There was the mission. Nothing else.

******

Giovanni felt the evening breeze cool the sweat that was forming on his neck. He wiped his forehead and sighed. His heart fluttered at the smallest of things.

Then, a pigeon flew from a flower bed behind him. He nearly had a heart attack.

He swayed trying to regain his balance. It wouldn't be wise to fall considering he was at the top of the _Duomo (375 ft)._ And he imagined that sliding down the dome and plummeting to his death wasn't going to be painless.

_'Damn pigeon!'_

Why was he like this. It wasn't like him at all.

_'Giovanni. Tu sei un idiota!'_ His mind screamed. Of course he knew why.

This mission was risky. This mission was dangerous.

That was an understatement.

He heard footsteps and he turned swiftly, his hand hovering over the hilt of his sword. He sighed in relief, it was only Marco.

"Luzio has gone ahead to set up the distraction, are you ready to do this?' He asked Giovanni in an almost patronising tone. Of course he was ready!

Wasn't he?

Giovanni nodded silently and Marco eyed the platform he was perched on. He pointed to it and smiled.

"May I?" Giovanni nodded and walked off the platform. Marco climbed up on the platform and turned to Giovanni.

"Good Luck." He said sincerely. Giovanni didn't want to talk, so he just nodded. Marco smiled and turned to face forward. He looked down to the street below.

Then he jumped.

Giovanni watched as he gracefully dove toward the ground. He turned in mid air in a fashion that reminded him of an eagle diving for a mouse. It was beautiful. He landed safely in the hay and smiled up at Giovanni, who returned an ugly smile, riddled with distraught. Giovanni exhaled the breath he was holding. It was his turn now.

After splitting up, Giovanni soon arrived at his destination, ten minutes early.

He walked into the party and marvelled at the beauty.

The room was filled to the brim with people, all dressed exquisitely. There were chandeliers the size of horses hanging from the roof, the crystal pieces glistened brightly in the light of the candles. There was soft music playing and everyone was dancing slowly in the centre of the room. It was a pretty exclusive party, the crowd wasn't huge. But what they lacked in size, they made up for in extravagance.

One couple were wearing clothes garnished in expensive threads and jewels, something even_ he_ - a very wealthy banker - would scarcely afford. Then he saw them.

They hung innocently from the necks of everyone at the party, taunting him. It was the one thing he didn't want to come across this evening, but deep down he was expecting this, he just didn't want to believe that it was a party for _them_.

The red cross, the white shield.

Templars- the age old nemesis of the assassins.

He sighed and walked unnoticed into the party. He glanced around, looking for his target when the music stopped abruptly. The crowed booed playfully and a man walked onto the stage where the musicians were. He cleared his throat as loud as he could and began shouting.

"My dear guests. Master Bugiardini will not be able to attend the party tonight because of a threat on his life." Giovanni drew in his breath nervously, this could only go one way. Without staying to hear what the man was about to say, he turned to leave again when he saw the guards block the entrance. Thankfully, they hadn't noticed Giovanni yet, but it wouldn't be long.

His eyes scanned the room where he saw Marco and Luzio climbing up the wall at the other end of the room. They escaped out the window and were safely out on the street. He sighed in relief. He didn't want them to die as well. Then, the unthinkable happened.

"Papa?" His voice made his blood run cold. What was **he** doing here?

"Ezio, what are you doing here?" He whispered to him angrily.

"I was invited by Sig. Bugiardini, he said by _special request."_ Giovanni knew that wasn't because Ezio was important (although it looked as if Ezio believed that was the reason). Bugiardini didn't even want Ezio to leave this party alive - he wanted both of them dead. Giovanni's mind searched frantically for an excuse to get him to leave.

"Papa, why are you wearing all those weap-" Giovanni's hand flew over Ezio's mouth. He could feel Ezio's muscles tighten uncomfortably, how would he explain this. He put his index finger against his own mouth.

"Sssh..." He whispered quietly and Ezio nodded frantically.

He pointed to the door, with a look of mock panic on his face (even though inside he really was panicking, it didn't manifest itself properly on the outside) and said,

"Quick son, you must hurry home! Your Mama is very sick. She collapsed on the floor about an hour ago and hasn't woken up yet." Ezio tore Giovanni's hand from his mouth and looked at him angrily. Giovanni's face screwed up in confusion. Ezio pointed roughly at Giovanni's chest and huffed loudly, like a spoilt child.

"Papa!" He exclaimed loudly, which made Giovanni search nervously around the room for people who might of heard it. Ezio was becoming furious.

"Look at me!" He shouted and pulled Giovanni's face to meet his.

"I know what's going on Papa!" Giovanni was speechless.

_'How did he find out. Never mind that, how will I explain myself!'_

"Son... I-I-I..." Ezio closed his eyes bitterly and looked at the ground. He spoke more silently this time.

"Papa, if you didn't want me going to so many parties why not just tell me! I can be reasonable you know!" Giovanni, who was about to explain himself realised what his son had just said.

_'What did he say? Parties? Yes!'_ Giovanni, who was screaming in relief on the inside, looked clam as ever on the outside. He knew that this was the perfect road to take. Ezio would never find out now and he would have a quick and easy escape from the party.

"Okay." He said while putting his hand on Ezio's shoulder, "I will talk to you about it at home. Let's go." Ezio nodded and they left the party contentedly (or as happily as you can when you have a large bounty on your head and your son has just acquired one because of you!). He rustled Ezio's hair affectionately while they passed through the guards, creating a good distraction.

When they arrived home Ezio went straight to bed without another word to him. He preferred it if Ezio was angry over something trivial thing like this than over the truth.

_'Phew! That was close.'_

******

Marco's heart was beating so hard he thought it would burst from his chest. He gripped his chest in an effort to calm himself, but to no avail. He looked at Luzio and sighed. This was an extremely close call. Luzio just shrugged his shoulders and said,

"Don't ask me, I thought this would go well." Of course neither of them knew that this was a set-up. Then, a thought occurred to Marco.

"It was **_him_**." He said angrily. How could Giovanni betray the brotherhood like this? He was famous for following the creed to the _letter_. Now, he seamed more preoccupied with living that with keeping the peace. Luzio, who had been in deep thought looked at Marco. He shook his head slowly and calmly.

"No." He said.

"What reason have you to say this?" Marco asked irritated by Luzio' sudden spell of wisdom and calm.

"Because, he would not have even entered the party if he was planning on getting us caught. I saw his expression when the man announced that Sig. Bugiardini wasn't there." Luzio replied. Marco tried to protest, but Luzio interrupted him.

"Besides, if he wanted to kill us, believe me, he would have done it just after we left the bureau. He is a very talented assassin." Marco sighed in defeat. Luzio's argument was a good one, more so than his own.

"So what do we do?" He asked Luzio, with a mixture of fear and confusion. It reminded him of when he found Marco, all those years ago.....

_(flashback)_

_Luzio flew gracefully across the rooftops. Rome was quiet beautiful in the evening, it was a shame that he had to spend it this way. He watched the sky as he sprinted across the poor district of Rome. The sun was just after setting which left a fire red light shining at the horizon. The clouds sported a serene violet colour with then melted into the midnight blue directly above him. the stars dotted the sky like small candles on a gigantic blue carpet._

_"Stop assassin!" A gruff voice called from behind him, interrupting his peaceful reflection._

_"Are you an idiot?" He called out confidently to the man, a cheeky smirk playing on his lips._

_"How dare you!" he shouted back, but these were empty threats. When it boiled down to it he would easily slit their throats and nobody would notice until the haystack in the alley by the main market square started to smell of rotting flesh._

_'Not bragging or anything.' He thought dryly. He sighed as he saw the distance between the roof he was on and the roof across the street. He may be athletic but that wasn't entirely possible. He stopped abruptly and turned to face his pursuers._

_He was tired of running._

_He gasped at what he saw. Most of the men lay sprawled on the rooftops dead, or dying. Only the commander was left, and he didn't look as if wanted to stick around too much longer. Luzio pulled out one of his throwing knives and raised his hand to throw it._

_But he was too late. Out of nowhere, a small blade pierced through the man's neck, knocking him to the ground in the process. He shouted and gurgled for a moment before becoming still. Luzio smiled as he saw where it came from._

_A small street boy ran from behind one of the roof gardens. He ripped the blade out of the men's necks and went to run away._

_"Wait boy!' Luzio called out authoritatively. The boy stopped and turned, his hands were shaking violently._

_Luzio walked slowly toward him making sure not to intimidate or scare him. As he got within a few meters the boy put out his hand assertively. Luzio stopped and raised his eyebrows in confusion._

_"Come no further assassin. I do not want to die." He had the voice of a noble boy, his rich Italian accent certainly didn't suit his attire. He wore a dirty white shirt with brown pants and no shoes. He was caked in mud and his hair was tangled and matted. He was definitely a street boy. But maybe once, he was nobility._

_"Who are you?" The boy looked away as if debating whether or not he should reveal his true identity. He looked back a Luzio but said nothing._

_"Believe me boy, if I wanted to kill you I would have killed you long before you even attacked those guards." The boy nodded and stuck out his hand. Luzio shook it, waiting impatiently for the boy's name._

_"My name is Marco, Figlio Di Nessuno." Luzio was taken aback by what he said. That obviously wasn't his real name but there must be a reason why he would say something like that. He must be illegitimate. _

_This boy was different, that was sure. He saw it in his unusually bright blue eyes, they were older than the boy himself. It was as if he had seen too much. _

_"What age are you?" The boy didn't talk, he just put up his fingers to demonstrate his age- ten fingers and then five. _

_"Fifteen?" Luzio asked in disbelief, the boy looked about ten. He was probably malnourished, the boy was like a skeleton. He was certainly talented for his age and physical condition. Maybe he had connections to the assassins, or worse, the Templars._

_"Where'd you learn to throw like that?" Marco looked at him quizzically and shrugged._

_"I just can, I guess." Then, a thought dawned on Luzio. He needed a new student, this boy - Marco- was without a family and was a talented marksman. He smiled and reached into his pocket. The boy flinched and took a step back from him._

_"No no Marco, I want to give you something." The boy stopped and put his hand on his hip cynically. _

_"I know you are gong to kill me assassin, so why not just do it without these stupid games." Luzio's smile widened. He was perfect. He walked up to the boy and took the boy's hand. He put something into his hand, a necklace._

_The boy looked at the necklace for a moment. It was made of red string with a teardrop-shaped pendant on it. Marco immediately recognised the symbol._

_"Marco?" Luzio said boldly while putting his hand on the boy's shoulder. The boy nodded._

_"Welcome to the brotherhood."_

_(end flashback)_

"Luzio? Are you listening?" Marco shouted, knocking Luzio out of his daydream. Luzio shook his head and smiled.

"Not in the least." Marco scoffed and walked over to the edge of the roof. He looked down on to the street and sighed. He looked back at Luzio and put his hands on his hips. It reminded Luzio of his mother.

"What I said was: The guards are starting to search the rooftops around here. They'll find-"

Then a disgruntled voice came from the street below.

"There, assassin!"

"Shit. Luzio run!" Marco shouted and grabbed Luzio's arm roughly. Having infinite knowledge of Florence, they both ran effortlessly across the city skyline. Each foot was perfectly placed and Luzio watched as Marco ran slightly ahead. He had grown a lot since that day. Well, it had been twelve years. He sighed nostalgically, ignoring the shouts from the guards that were closing in fast.

Then, Marco stopped abruptly. Luzio almost ran full speed into his back but skidded across the ground, stopping only inches from Marco's body.

What are you doing, they're coming!" Luzio shouted sharply.

"Sssh! Jump to the left." Marco said quickly.

"What the hell?" Luzio asked confused. Marco ignored his comment and leapt off the side of the building down to the street below. Luzio watched as he disappeared into the right hand side of a haystack at the side of a small market square. He nodded in understanding.

"Oh. The left." He smiled as his stupidity. Then, a voice came from behind him.

"Stop assassin!" He turned to the guards and smiled audaciously. He put his index and middle finger to his forehead and saluted the guards.

"See you around boys!" He winked and jumped off the side of the building. The guards shouted and ran to the edge of the building. Silence fell upon them at what they saw, or more rightly put, what they didn't see. Both the assassins were gone.

"Damn assassins. We'll get them next time." The leader cursed and they all returned to their shifts at the party.

Down below, a few minutes later, two men were seen climbing out of a haystack.

They're walk back to the bureau was trouble-free, which gave them time to talk. Marco hated talking, especially when Luzio was feeling nostalgic.

"You know, I can't believe how much you have changed." He said while looking peacefully at the sky. Marco looked at him exasperatedly.

"Why do you always keep bringing up the past?" He asked and Luzio looked at him sharply. Marco took a step away from him and stopped walking.

"You know, you can't hide from this foreve-"

"Luzio, shut up!" Luzio was startled into silence. Marco had no intention of ever speaking of it ever ever _ever _again. He wasn't going to revisit the past as Luzio wanted him to. He had pleaded with Marco to talk about it but to no avail.

The rest of the walk was done in painful silence.

They arrived at the bureau thirty minutes later. The Master dismissed them saying that the matter of the set-up would be discussed the next day and that they needed their rest. They left and went to their rooms. Luzio went to Marco's room.

Marco was just about to walk in when Luzio caught him by the shoulder. He turned slowly to Luzio and huffed.

"What?" He asked, like an angry teenager.

"I'm sorry." Luzio said softly. Marco's face grimaced in anger and he pushed Luzio's arm off his shoulder.

"So am I."

He slammed the door shut.

Ten seconds later, Giovanni kicked open the door of the Masters room, raging like a bull.

"You degenerate bastard, YOU LIED!" He snarled at the master who stood up, a look of utter shock on his face.

"How dare you-" He couldn't even finish his sentence before Giovanni interrupted him again.

"How dare I? I have done nothing wrong, I did what you asked in return for empty promises!" The Master, who was positively fuming walked up to Giovanni and raised his blade to his throat.

"Go on. Do it!" Giovanni threatened. The Master came so close to cutting Giovanni's head off his body, before the sound of his own master came flooding into his mind.

_'Remember Alberto, never compromise the brotherhood in any way!'_

He sighed and walked away from Giovanni, who smiled in victory. The Master sat back at his desk before speaking to Giovanni.

"Giovanni. I am truly sorry that this mission did not go to plan, but I did not break my promise."

"Yes you did! The Templars want Ezio dead as well!" Giovanni was already out of breath from shouting. The Master raised his eyebrow at Giovanni, making him feel uncomfortable.

"Templars you say?"


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Hi guys! I haven't uploaded in ages with school and all but now I've finally got the chance to upload chapter four.**

**Please review 'cuz you know I love when you do ! ^_^ Pleeeeeeeeeeease!!**

**This chapter is quite short but I promise they'll be longer later on in the story.**

**Now, to continue with the story......**

There was only black. Darkness, nothingness

Then, a light, a sound?

Her eyes opened. Light came flooding back to her world. It was too bright, so she squinted, putting her handover her eyes to shield them. Her whole body felt weak and numb. She groaned and sat up in the bed.

She was in her room. She looked around, expecting to see Marco.

There was no one there.

She swung her legs over the bed gingerly and carefully lowered herself on to the floor. She staggered a little at first, but was able to walk properly once she reached the door. Expecting to see him now, she peered out into the dark hall.

Still no one.

Usually this hall is filled with assassins and scribes and the occasional scholar. But today it was empty. Not even the sound of sparring could be heard from the fighting ring outside her bedroom window. Something felt horribly wring about the situation.

Then it hit her. She turned to look back into the room and her fears were confirmed.

"This isn't my room." She said aloud and walked briskly down the hall. There, she met a scared looking nurse who pleaded with her to return to bed. She pushed her way past her and ran to the nearest door. She pushed it open roughly and immediately wished she hadn't.

Inside the next room was every assassin in Florence and it's surrounding cities(about thirty men and ten women), all gathered around the Master's table. It was then that she realised what she was wearing. She looked down at her body to find she was wearing a very short dressing gown, which was given to patients in the infirmary.

"Alessandra?" A familiar voice called. It was Marco. Her eyes widened as he was now attracting the attention of _**everyone in the room**_. She gasped and shut the door quickly, before she shamed herself further.

She ran like a bat out of hell back to her room. She managed to completely avoid Marco and any other assassins on her way back. She walked into the room she woke up in and fell down on to the bed. She groaned at the embarrassment of the situation.

"I wont be doing _that_ anytime soon." She said in a huff.

"Doing what?" She jumped up off the bed. He stood in the doorway smiling evilly at her.

"Don't make this worse Marco." She warned and sat back down on the bed. Marco walked in and sat beside her.

"I thought you'd escaped or something. But I was checking the wrong room." She looked at him strangely.

"What?" He asked innocently. Alessandra then realised the gravity of the situation. She had fallen off a five-storey building and was out for God-only-knows how long. She looked at Marco, her expression now one of shock.

"How long was I out?" She asked hesitantly and he smiled.

"Only for a day, which was good considering how far you fell." She nodded and then another upsetting thought occurred to her.

"Oh shit! I missed the Bugiardini assassination!" She stood up and began pacing up and down, mumbling about how she would complete it and that she would have to travel, and something about '_Giovanni on his own.._.' She started to mumble more and paced faster, with her hands clasped in a praying position over her mouth. Marco was certainly tired of her wild mood swings. But she was, after all, a woman.

Then, Marco interjected.

"Wait, don't worry. We went to do it and it was all an intricate plan to try and kill us." He said cheerfully. She looked at him quizzically and he shrugged.

"Oh! That's not worrying, why would I worry!" She replied sarcastically. Marco scowled and put his hands on his hips, he always looked like a woman when he did that.

"I see the injury hasn't changed you." Alessandra smiled cheekily at him and curtsied to him. He stopped smiling for a moment, in thought.

Then, out of the blue, he walked out into the hall. He beckoned her with his hand and she followed. They walked for five minutes until they reached a part of the building Alessandra knew well. They arrived at her usual room and he pointed in the door.

"Get dressed quickly, we have a lot to do." She nodded and walked in. Marco walked in after her and sat on her bed. She turned to him, her eyebrows furrowing in anger, and pointed at the door.

"Get out, I'm changing!" She shouted. He smiled and pulled a puppy-dog face.

"Oh Alessandra, we're all friends here!" She walked over to him and grabbed him by the shoulders. She threw him with all her strength out into the hall. He slammed up against the wall and fell to the floor momentarily. He stood up, looked at her and tut-tutted.

"My dear, violence is not the way." He said sardonically, mimicking a scholar. She scoffed and closed the door forcefully. He could hear the key being turned in the door and he laughed loudly, something he hadn't done in a long time.

******

Ezio woke to the sounds of birds chirping outside his window. He sat up blissfully ignorant to what happened last night. Then it all came flooding back.

There were so may unanswered questions. What was Papa doing at the party? Why was he dressed in those clothes? What had he _weapons _on him?

He was tired of waiting, he wanted answers. Now!

He stormed out of bed in only a bathrobe straight to his father's room. He kicked in the door and began to shout. He stopped mid-sentence at the sound of his mother crying. He stood there in shock before Giovanni walked up and closed the door on both of them.

"She is not well, in mind and body." He said monotonously. Ezio decided that kind of a response deemed that he ask no more questions. they walked into the dining room.

Giovanni grabbed Ezio's shoulder lightly and looked at him.

"Son, I want you to go to Venice. As a gift from father to son. Also, I want your mother to spend some tie away from her usual tasks, so she may recover better."

"But why Venice? I could just keep out of Mama's way." He asked innocently. Something Giovanni couldn't keep alive forever. Soon he would know, whether it was before or after he was dead.

"Because I am hosting a special bankers-only evening this weekend and I need the house empty of people. I hope you don't mind." It was more of a threat than a question. Ezio shook his head, how could he refuse? He loved Venice. And best of all. It was festival week.

Giovanni called out to Ezio who was turning to leave the room,

"I will join you then in two weeks, when everything is straightened out."

Two weeks without parents, what an opportunity.

Ezio smiled evilly and rushed to pack his things.

******

"What?" Alessandra exclaimed loudly. The Master nodded patronisingly and she scoffed.

"It will be good for you." Marco interjected happily, which was met by an icy stare on Alessandra's behalf. He put his hands up defensively.

"Okay okay! Forge I spoke." Alessandra smiled in victory and returned her attention to the Master who was sitting smugly in his chair.

_'Is sitting all he does?'_ Her head asked childishly. He did seam to do nothing, but Alessandra knew that the Master, as well as being a talented assassin and fighter, he also had impeccable knowledge of all things to do with trade, art, science and of course politics- the assassin's speciality.

"Don't worry Alessandra." He spoke calmly, " I do not question your skill, you are a master assassin. I merely question your mind. You have not been right since the death of Orlando. And now the stress of your loss is affecting your health. I merely ask that you take this month off and then resume as an assassin instructor. I have a feeling that you will have a student by the end of this month." He always said things like that, not sharing information with others, just quietly planning the future of each assassin. In Alessandra's opinion, that's why he became the Grand Master and she didn't. They trained together but he excelled in the skills of a Grand Master, whereas she was more of a teacher. So she became an instructor. Until of course, Orlando died.

"Fine. I will." Alessandra mumbled and the Master clasped his hands together excitedly.

"Great. You will spend your time in Venice with a good friend of the assassins, Leonardo Da Vinci." Alessandra nodded. She knew Leo very well. They were firm friends, despite their temperamental differences.

She nodded and left the room to get ready. She knew that she would regret this trip in at least one way. Leo would probably try to get her to pose in the nude, something she had no intention of ever doing. _Ever_.

She sighed as she arrived into her room, her sanctum. She would miss the privacy of being an assassin for the month. Because for the next thirty odd days, she was just another woman.

She grimaced.

The one upside (or more rightly put "the lesser of the two evils") is that it was festival week, so she would fade seamlessly into the crowd.

"Just a blade in the crowd."

******

A man dressed in white entered an empty room, or so it looked. He called out into the darkness.

"Preparations have been made master." He said timidly. A man emerged from the shadows. He had a chubby face with a large beard and piercing dark blue eyes. He wore expensive dark blue and gold silks. Around his neck hung a small red cross pendant. A symbol of his proud heritage. The man spoke.

"Good." He said, musing over the possibilities after the deed was done. He marvelled at the thought of metal piercing his flesh, putting an end to his reign over their order forever.

There was of course, his target's son. But what trouble would he be? From what his informants gathered, the boy was a talentless, spoilt, rich child. An easy target in is mind. All he simply had to do was to threaten a merchant friend of the boy's to give him an assassins necklace that would immediately distinguish him from the crowd, giving his soldiers an easy target. He turned to the man still standing at the door nervously.

"William, go and give the orders. Tell the soldiers to kill both of them when they are in Venice at the festival in two weeks. kill his wife and daughter too, we don't need witnesses." The man nodded and he left the room hurriedly. The plan was coming to fruition, soon he would be in control again.

Soon, Giovanni Auditore would be dead.

Soon.

He smiled and left the room smugly. He wold destroy the assassins like they did to his father.

They would pay, one way or another.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Don't worry, I'm not dead. Well, I hope so.**

**I know it's been aeons since I last updated but school is a total time consumer so I barely got time to do this chapter (which may possibly translate into mistakes and bad writing in general, but I really really hope not!)**

**As always I love when you review so thank you in advance (now the pressure is on! ^_^) for your review!**

**R&R please! How can I get better if I'm not helped!!**

The journey was unnaturally long, but it gave her time to think.

She thought of how he wasn't coming back, and that her time in Venice would be more enjoyable if she just accepted it, but it was hard. Each time she saw his smile she broke into tears, and then the painful process would begin all over again. It was a vicious circle bereavement, one she dearly needed to escape before it became too late.

The coach stopped abruptly and the door swung open to reveal a small, ugly man smiling at her. He bowed and pointed at the ground immediately outside the coach.

"We have arrived Milady. I hope the journey was enjoyable."

"No. She replied bitterly. The man grimaced and tried to help her out of the carriage. She hit his hand and scowled at him. He scoffed and went to get her bags.

"You know Milady-"

"Stop calling me that. I have a name." Se supposed that if she didn't tell him her name then he might stop talking to her. His high-pitched elf-like voice was starting to irritate her. She grabbed the bags and turned for the city.

She stopped in her tracks. It was beautiful.

The city sprawled majestically over a small peninsula. The terracotta roofs spread out over the land until the soft blue sea. Then, as she sighed in awe of the city, a bright green firework exploded in the sky, sending green sparks into the sky. She felt like a child again. Then, the idiot interrupted her again.

"What I was saying was, that no man will take you if you act as obnoxious as that." He said in a huff. Alessandra turned to look at him sternly, which made him very uncomfortable. He turned away in embarrassment and Alessandra nodded.

"He's right you know." A beautiful voice spoke from behind her. He had a strong Italian accent that made every word he said magical. She turned to see Carlo, he was stunning. He had deep green eyes and unblemished skin. His dark brown hair fell handsomely on his shoulder, it was shinier than most of Florence's noble women's hair. He wore a beautiful dark green shirt with gold string embroidered into the cuffs and the collar. He wore matching black pants and boots with more gold string stitched decoratively in the perfect places. He also wore a very familiar pendant around his neck.

"How was your journey?" He asked hesitantly while Alessandra was staring at him. She smiled in embarrassment and handed him one of her bags.

"It was long and boring, not to mention the coach driver was a pain in the ass." She said sulking. He chuckled and put his arm around her shoulder. He led her to the city gate passing through the guards without difficulty. He caught her expression as they passed through the guard post and smiled proudly.

"They're a little more laid-back here in Venice." She barely even heard what he was saying, she was once again enthralled in the city. The streets were lit up with lamps and decorated with colourful banners. It was like living in a painting.

"Speaking of living in a painting." She mumbled as Leonardo Da Vinci walked up happily to them, waving frantically.

"Welcome Alessandra, you look very beautiful today." He said with an innocent smile. She smile back and hugged him lovingly. They had been like brother and sister, but after Orlando's death, he seamed to just fade out of her life.

"So, I think it's time that we bought you new clothes." Leo said dismally while eying up Alessandra's clothes confusedly. She was wearing tattered brown pants with a white shirt that was way too big for her. Both of her articles of clothing were covered with splatters of mud. Se started down at her clothes and shouted accusingly at Leo.

"These clothes are fine!" She said while trying to wipe off the dirt from her shirt subtly, it wasn't working. Leo chortled and took her by the hand toward the shopping district.

Alessandra sighed, what a long day this was going to be.

Without even having something to eat, Leo took Alessandra shopping for a new dress. She claimed to ate everything until she saw this one particular dress.

It was deep blue, like the twilight sky. It had silver string embroidered into beautiful roses around the corset and the end of the train. It was made of soft silk and comfy felt. She sighed and looked at Leo. He smiled and took a look at the dress.

"You like it?" He asked in disbelief and Alessandra laughed out loud.

"Sadly yes," she said in mock seriousness. Leo grabbed the dress and pushed her into the dressing room.

"Can't we just buy it?" She protested, making people in the shop laugh at her.

"No, Just try it on." Leo replied sternly and Alessandra sighed in defeat.

After a good ten minutes and many aggrieved grunts, she emerged in the dress, out of breath and sulking.

Leo was speechless. She looked beautiful, like the women in the statues and paintings of the time. Alessandra noticed his look and blushed. She turned her head away from him and smiled.

"Don't look at me like that Leo." She said embarrassed and he snapped out of his daze.

"It's perfect." He finally said and Alessandra walked back into the dressing room. Leo shook his head like a dog, trying to dismiss the feelings he had. He sighed and realised it was beyond his control.

He was falling for her.

******

Ezio had spent a whole week without parents in Venice, it was fantastic.

He went out drinking each night, and brought a new lady home every night! This was the life, it was a shame his father would arrive today.

He decided to spend what little free time he had left browsing through the bustling marketplaces of Venice, maybe he might find another beautiful item, like his necklace he bought off Lorenzo.

He looked at the necklace adoringly, he had never loved a piece of jewellery so much, it was magnificent. He sighed and looked up from the bench he was sitting on.

The streets were filled with people, it was both exciting and frightening. The sound of music from different street musicians floated ominously around the city.

Ezio, who was dressed to kill stood up tall from the bench. He walked proudly through the streets, catching the eye of many pretty girls.

Nothing could compare to this! He was rich, handsome and he was learned, the best of all worlds!

He winked at a pretty red-haired girl who was staring at him for some time. She walked up to him and leaned toward his face. He smiled and spoke softly.

"You are the most beautiful woman I have ever laid eyes on." He said, his words dripping with lust. Her eyes slowly drifter from his face to his chest and transfixed on his necklace. She smiled and turned to walk away. He ran after her and called out to her.

"Where are you going _mio amore_?" But she continued to walk away. He sighed and admitted defeat mentally.

_'Maybe you were just too handsome for her.'_ His mind consoled, which immediately lightened his spirits. He strolled confidently toward some stalls and began to bargain his way through mountains of items.

The red-haired woman walked slowly around an alleyway corner, where a man dressed as an assassin was standing. It would have been a convincing costume for everyone except the real assassins, because he still wore the red cross innocently on his ear. The woman spoke in hushed whispers.

"The target has arrived in Venice, remember Master said to wait until his father arrives to kill them, and when he does, make sure to do it as quick as possible." The man rolled his eyes and huffed.

"I know Catherina! I'm not a six-year old!" The woman scoffed and walked around the corner muttering.

_'Sometimes I wonder.'_ She continued to walk down a small street packed with beggars and thieves. She swiftly passed a note to another woman in the crowd who nodded at her in agreement.

The plan was going perfectly.

Ezio spent most of the day, wait, make that _the entire day_ shopping and it was dark before he realised just how long he had been out. He laughed mentally at his silliness and went to return to the hotel room.

He walked along the canal for five minutes before he realised what was wrong.

"Where am I?" He asked out loud, not expecting an answer. But one came anyway.

"Venice." It was a woman's voice. He sighed and threw his eyes to heaven.

"Wow, thank you stranger, that was extremely helpful!" A giggle came from the darkness. It wasn't a girlish one, but a beautiful womanly one (or at least that's what he called it). He wanted to see her face. If her voice was anything to go by, she'd be stunning.

He called out into the darkness.

"Who are you?"

No answer. There was only silence. He began to wonder if she had run away when he asked her name, out of fear. He turned his ear to where he last heard her and heard heavy breathing. He smiled.

Then, finally, she spoke again.

"You first."

******

"NO!" She shouted angrily as Leo bowed nervously to all the scared people around them. It had been a week in Venice and she wasn't having any fun. The parties were too extravagant, the men too rude and the women just as rude, maybe even more so.

"Please Alessandra!" He implored to her, "Just one dance!"

"No No No No No NO!" At this point Leo could do little other than to give up and find another partner. He was completely and utterly head-over-heals for Alessandra, even if she was bad-tempered and childish. He guessed that love went beyond the formalities.

He frowned at her and she folded her arms to prove a point. He grumbled and walked away into the crowd, using the line 'I'm an artist' on all the girls. They all danced with him and it didn't take long before Leo didn't even realise Alessandra wasn't there anymore.

She walked around the nearest corner and the sounds of music and cheering faded into the distance. Once she could hear the party no more she sighed and walked through the moonlit streets. It was peaceful, the sound of the canal water slowly lapping against the walls soothed her anger.

She walked out toward the water and stared into it. She could barely see the distorted reflection of her own face, she sighed. Being a woman was a million times harder than being an assassin could ever be. Soon, she became tired of looking at herself and stood up. She walked into the shadow of a closed market stall when she heard a voice.

"Where am I?" She turned to see a young man standing confused in the street. He was taller than most, but quite scrawny for his height. He had sallow skin and ruffled brown hair. She knew he looked familiar but she just couldn't pinpoint who he was. She decided to answer his obviously soliloquist question.

"Venice." she called out and laughed very quietly. He looked around eagerly. He stared directly at her but she felt comfort knowing he couldn't see her.

"Wow, thank you stranger, that was extremely helpful!" A giggle burst from her lips. She put her hand to her mouth in shock. She hadn't laughed like that in a long time. She sighed happily and waited for him to walk away.

But he didn't. Instead, he did the worst possible thing.

"Who are you?"

She froze. Never in a million years did she expect him to pursue her. She cursed mentally for her flirtatious behaviour, which was so unlike her. Her mind was travelling at a million miles an hour.

_'What should I say? Will I say my real name, or make one up? What if he laughs at me?'_

Then, the cruel part of her mind interjected.

_'Who gives a shit? Just tell him your name! You're being such a child!'_

She returned to her senses and realised it had been some time since he last spoke. She blushed and immediately decided on a win-win option (or so she hoped dearly).

"You first." She tried to sound under control, but her voice was shaky and she blurted out her words like vomit.

He smiled. He was like a god. His teeth were pearl white and the smile only served to enhance his handsome features.

"Ezio Auditore Di Firenze." She gasped. He was Giovanni's son? What was he doing in Venice when his family were in so much trouble? She realised that sooner or later she would have to say her name, if his father was anything to go by he wouldn't rest until he got what he wanted.

"Alessandra." She said. She knew that not saying her surname would seam distant, but she couldn't even if she wanted. She had no idea what it was.

"Ah, that is a beautiful name." His smile was widening by the minute which made her uncomfortable. He began to walk toward her. Her breath caught in her throat. She felt like running but decided that this social occasion wasn't worse than Leo finding her and taking her back to the party. She grimaced and waited for him to walk up to her.

He reached into the darkness and took her hand. She gasped quietly and walked out of the shadow.

Then, it was his turn to gasp.

He stood there dumbstruck. He had never in his life seen such a beautiful creature. Her skin was pale and unblemished. Her eyes were pale- almost white- blue. her hair was dark burgundy and it flowed like water from her head to her shoulders.

"Wait." He voiced his thoughts, "I saw you in Florence last week. You were running from the guards." He let go of her hand and she stepped back in disgust. How could he accuse her of such a thing? How dare he (Even though it was true!).

"No, I was running from an awful man who was trying to hurt me. he was the manager of the bar I used to work in and he wanted me to do some shameful things to entertain his patrons, but I refused and ran, and he chased me. I just merely crossed paths with the guards." Her excellent lying skills worked. He smiled and took her hand again. He seamed to completely forget that it had ever happened. Although, she knew he wouldn't question her story considering it's nature.

"Would you like to go for a walk?" He asked. She nodded and he took her on the romantic path along the canal. Of course, none of this worked. Despite her behaviour, Alessandra felt no real physical attraction to Ezio. Although, she felt safe with him, and she didn't even know why.

Then, Ezio turned to Alessandra and smiled lovingly. His smiled faded quickly and he sighed.

"Alessandra. I am sorry. But I cannot be with you at the moment, for I am going through some rough things." It was a relief to hear him say this, because she had become increasingly uncomfortable with his romantic gestures.

"Don't worry." She interjected his shaky speech, "We don't have to do that, we can be friends."

He nodded and let go of her hand. It was awkward, but she wanted to stay in his company for a little longer. She hoped that this uncomfortable situation would prompt him to leave her standing in the street, like so many other men had.

"Okay." He said and smiled again. It was comforting for her and she immediately relaxed again.

He walked up to a small canal bridge and sat down on it. He patted the space beside him and Alessandra sat there.

"I may not love you, But I still think you are one of the most beautiful women I have ever seen." She smiled sweetly and looked away. Being an assassin meant that their was no time for being beautiful. Most of the time she was covered in cuts, grazes, mud and sweat. It wasn't a pretty sight. Then, to end the silence Ezio spoke again.

"So, why are you in Venice?" Ezio asked, genuinely interested (which surprised even himself). Alessandra decided that lying was wrong but omission was acceptable (she also decided that not telling him she was an assassin would have been the smarter choice!).

"I had an injury and was sent here for the convalescence." Ezio eyes widened and he searched around her for a sign of injury. He sighed.

"It doesn't look like it. What really happened?" He asked sceptically. Alessandra feigned disgust and Ezio chuckled lightly.

"Well it really wasn't that bad. I just fell of a roof- only five stories- and was unconscious for a day, which was good considering...." She trailed off. Ezio's mouth fell open in shock.

"Five. Stories." He managed to choke out. Alessandra giggled and hit his shoulder playfully. She was surprised how they managed to just sit and talk like they had been friends forever. She liked it.

Then, a familiar voice ruined the peace. It was Leo

"Alessandra! What are you doing here with...." Leo paused for a moment and stared at Ezio.

"Ezio?" Leo finished his sentence and Ezio smiled. Ezio stood up and hugged Leo. Ezio quietly slipped a piece of paper to Alessandra. She went to open it but he mouthed the word 'no' to her and she put it in her waist bag.

"Ah Leo, my old friend! I was about to visit you tomorrow." Ezio said happily. Leo had already deduced what was going on (i.e. Ezio was courting Alessandra, or at least trying). And even though he was wrong, he didn't know that!

Ezio noticed the look on his face and looked over at Alessandra. Then, all became clear in his mind.

"No!" He shouted at Leo while pointing at Alessandra. "I already said I wasn't interested in her in _that_ way!" Leo nodded and raised an eyebrow at Ezio.

"Sure." Ezio grunted and walked away. Alessandra tried to follow him when Leo cleared his throat loudly.

"Where do you think you're going." She stopped and sighed.

"With you." She said in defeat. He smiled and they returned to the party.

Alessandra even danced, but she had only one thing in her mind:

Ezio, his family and most of all, what was going to happen when Giovanni's enemies get their way (not if, but when). It was bound to happen sooner or later.

She had decided there and then that she would do whatever she could to help them.

As they left the party she kept hoping Ezio would turn up, but, he didn't.

That night, as she sat in to bed she thought about how she would get the Auditore family out of their trouble.

_'Finish off Bugiardini.' _She smiled as her mind tempted her. She gave the idea some thought and realised that it would actually go a long way to solving the problem.

After falling into a deep sleep, she dreamt of her plan.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N:Hey there people! I finally have chapter six up, hopefully you haven't lost interest! **

**Don't worry, I'm done with stupid plot details, the plot is finally coming together, hopefully. **

**I like it actually (which is strange because usually don't like my own writing) so I hope you do too!**

**R&R please!**

The next week of Alessandra's life had been the happiest of her life.

She met with Ezio each day now. They toured the markets by daylight, and walked by the canal at night. She felt like they were meant to be friends. They seamed to get on so well for people who had only known each other for a week. As they walked by the packed stalls, Ezio turned to her and smiled.

"Tomorrow, my father will be coming to Venice. I want you to meet him." Little did Ezio know that she already knew him all too well. Alessandra smiled and nodded, the dramatic irony was all too painful. She knew that he was bound to find out, and when he did, they would no longer be friends.

She frowned.

Ezio's eyebrows screwed up in concern. Alessandra stayed staring at the ground solemnly.

_'Just ask her what's wrong.' _Ezio's mind commanded him, but he refused.

_'I can't. I don't want to know what is wrong, because I'm afraid enough already of something I don't even know about._ _Remember, Papa's weird temperament, I doubt he's back to normal' _Ezio's mind scoffed at him and he scoffed out loud. Alessandra looked up at him and he smiled sheepishly.

Then, a bell chimed behind them in the church. It was twelve o' clock. Alessandra looked up at the clock on the church wall and sighed.

"I have to go." She said sadly and began to walk away. Ezio called out to her through the crowd.

"Same time tomorrow, in the church yard!" She nodded and smiled.

For the first time in a while, she was excited.

She skipped happily along the street and passed a small house with a man in armour guarding. She stared at the guard for a moment before continuing on toward Leo's studio.

As she entered, Leo was standing there, looking a little more frustrated than usual. He was tapping his foot off the ground impatiently and had his arms folded. He looked like a concerned parent.

"Where have you been!" He shouted at her. She sighed and threw her waist-bag on the coat hanger by the door.

"I was out with Ezio Mama!" She replied and Leo scoffed. He didn't like the way they were spending so much time together. He doubted that their relationship would remain friendly for long at this rate.

_'If Ezio got his way......'_

Leo began to speak to Alessandra again, but she was gone. He heard the spare room door slam shut.

He sighed and returned to his painting.

******

Meanwhile......

Giovanni's eyes slowly opened to find that he wasn't in the carriage where he fell asleep. He knew he'd regret falling asleep on his journey, but at the time he was too tired to care.

He tried to sit up to find that he was tied to the ground by thick rusting shackles. He guessed that he hadn't been here for long, otherwise his wrists would be torn and bleeding. They were only lightly grazed, and it was still day time outside, so he put his time tied at no more than three hours.

He heard a church bell ring outside, which confirmed his suspicions.

He looked up to see that he was in a cell block, an empty one. The floor was covered in a strange layer of blood, slime and water leaking in from the ceiling. The walls were cracked and mostly made of inferior blocks, but he still knew he would need more than that to get out of such a horrible place. Besides, it was probably heavily guarded.

He sighed and looked at the rat-infested holes in the wall. He sniffed only to find the air smelled as bad as he imagined, it made him feel more sick than he thought he could possibly be. He gagged on his breath for a moment before regaining composure enough to plan his escape.

This time, he scanned himself for clues to his escape. He was wearing his normal clothes but most of his weapons were gone, except one.

His hand slid under his coat to feel the leather wrapped around a knife, which was nestled inside a hidden pocket. He gracefully pulled it out and held it with his right hand. He stared at his left hand and winced. What he was about to do was going to hurt.

His mind pleaded with him to reconsider, but he knew deep down he had no time to plan a more glamorous escape. This had to be done.

He held his breath and clenched his left hand into a fist.

"God, give me strength." He said and chopped down on his left hand. He felt the searing heat and pain flow up his arms. He pulled what was left of his arm out of the shackle and let his severed hand fall lifelessly to the cell floor. He whimpered and held tightly on to the wound for about and hour before it began to stop hurting enough for him to move around.

He looked down at the stub and felt like crying. There was more that a few sentimental feelings associated with your own hands. He sighed and tore off a piece of his shirt. He wrapped it tightly around his 'stub'(it would be a crime to call it a hand). He stretched out his good hand as far as it would go and crawled toward the cell door.

With the knife in his mouth he knelt up against the cell door. He stuck the knife in and twiddled it around for a while until he heard a very satisfying clicking sound. He smiled and went to crawl out of the cell. He would have been able if he hadn't been tugged back into the cell by his still shackled right hand. He scoffed at his stupidity and sat down, waiting for his opportunity to arise.

His left stump throbbed lightly every few minutes but it was nothing he couldn't handle. He looked at the handless arm every now and again and felt a twinge of regret, which he had little other choice than to shrug off if he was to escape. He decided to try and close the cell door again, so as not to arouse suspicion, but he had no time.

The door of the cell room burst open and an angry guard came stomping in. He stopped clean in his tracks when he saw Giovanni half shackled to the wall, with one hand cut of and lying on the ground and a knife in his mouth inside the lock of the cell door (you can imagine how strange that was for him). It would have been comical if Giovanni wasn't in pain. Giovanni pulled the knife out of the lock and took it in his right hand. He waited.

The guard shouted at Giovanni and unsheathed his sword.

But he remained still.

He ran closer and closer, shouting obscenities at Giovanni.

But he remained still.

He ran into the cell and began to swing at Giovanni's chest.

But he remained still.

Giovanni watched this unfold at a slower speed than normal, as his veins were pumped with adrenaline. He counted back from four as the guard swung at him. He managed a solid stance and waited.

_'Quattro .... tre .... due .... uno.'_

He rolled out of the way and thrust the chain shackled to his right hand in the path of the guard's sword. There was a loud clang and the faulty chain smashed apart. Giovanni chuckled darkly as he ran away from the Guard and free from the cell.

Just as he ran for the door, he turned and threw his dagger at the soldier, piercing flesh directly in the centre of his forehead. Giovanni was a strong thrower and so it crushed some of the man's skull. The man screamed in pain and fell to the floor, writhing. Giovanni smiled and ran free from the prison.

He ran out on to the street and put his handless arm into his pocket to keep it hidden. He looked around, seeing that it was two minutes past twelve on the church clock.

"Now." He said aloud to himself, "To find Ezio."

******

Alessandra walked into the square and waited. Ezio and she met in this church yard each day since they'd first met. She remembered that the piece of paper Ezio had given her the night they met had only a symbol, and this symbol was carved into the church wall in the very square she was standing in. She sighed and began to tap her foot impatiently. She looked at all the entrances to the square. For some reason, she had a feeling that he'd be late toady, so now all she could de was wait.

Then, the sound of footsteps filled the eerily quiet square. She turned to find Ezio walking in, looking very worried. She walked up to him and began to ask what was wrong, but he answered before she had the chance.

"My father. " He said shakily, "He's missing." Alessandra stopped in her tracks. Her mind ran through the events of the past week, and she knew exactly where he was and more importantly, who had him.

"Bugiardini." She whispered maliciously. Ezio looked at her confusedly and she sighed. She put her hand on his shoulder and looked painstakingly into his eyes.

"You have to believe me, that you're father is in danger. I can't tell you how or why, you'll just have to trust me. Okay?" Ezio remained silent for a moment staring at the ground. Then, he spoke.

"I should have known this was going to happen, he was acting so strangely before I came here." Alessandra understood. When she met him a week before the Bugiardini assassination he seamed distant and scared, and now she fully understood why.

"Come on then. " She said and ran out of the square.

******

She ran so fast through the streets, I couldn't understand why I was unable keep up with her.

"Hurry Ezio!" She would call to me but I just couldn't. She was like an eagle swooping around the corners.

This was confusing, but I still didn't demand an explanation. All I wanted was to see my father safe, and hopefully with his other hand still intact.

Then, we arrived at a small building, not too far from where we parted the day before. The door was slightly open. Alessandra signalled for me to stay outside, she certainly was a strange woman. As if I was going to stay out here and let a woman do the dirty-work. Then, as she opened the door a stench of rotting flesh wafted into the street. It was the most revolting smell that I had ever experienced. I strained to hold in my vomit.

"Good luck. " I said and let her go in on her own.

She walked in and I immediately began to feel so uncomfortable. It was only thirty seconds but I went to the door to see what was taking her so long. Just as I reached out to the door, it flung open and hit me in the shoulder. I winced and Alessandra giggled at me.

"He's not here anymore, well most of him." She took a severed hand out from behind her back. At first, I doubted the fact that it was his, then I saw the family ring. my mouth fell open. I gagged and turned away. I barely managed to chock out a few words.

"His....hand....?" Then I felt the hot vomit rise up my throat and spill out on to the street. I fell to my knees and began to cough uncontrollably. After I was all out of things to throw up, I managed a few deep breaths before looking up at Alessandra. I wiped my mouth and stood up with my back to her. I heard her sigh and felt her hand on my shoulder.

"I'm sorry, I didn't think you'd get sick looking at it. I'll wrap it up in cloth." She said, and it shocked me.

"You're keeping it?" I asked stunned. She gave a quiet 'uh-huh' and walked ahead of me. I followed reluctantly. I couldn't see it but I could sense the hand in her waist bag. I shivered. Her walking sped up to a jog, which then sped up to a very fast sprint.

Once again, I could barely keep up.

As she ran ahead of me I started to smell something funny, it was like burning. I ran around the corner after her.

The rest was a blur....

There was an explosion, a scream.

Then, nothing.

******

Giovanni paced around a small market square facing the port. He had no idea where he would find Ezio, he checked his hostel and he wasn't there. He checked Leo's house and Leo wasn't even there.

He even checked some of the brothels.

No Ezio.

He sat on a small box where he had a great idea.

"The main market square!" He shouted out, which earned him more than a few strange looks.

He ran and ran until he could barely feel is feet anymore. Then as he ran toward a small alley he saw a very familiar face.

"Alessandra?" She looked up at him as they ran toward each other. Then, behind her was Ezio. He gasped.

_'They can't meet ! This is all wron-'_

A explosion cut off then end of his sentence. It engulfed the entire street he, Ezio and Alessandra were running through.

His world became bright white and he felt a searing heat all over his body.

He heard a shrill scream and fell into another uncomfortable sleep.

******

The young solider watched as they heaved the bodies into the cell. It gave him a perverse sense of satisfaction that he was part of all this plot.

The people's were less burnt than the young trainee soldier thought they would be. The explosion they set in the street to catch them was unbelievably lucky to have actually worked, but it did little more than send them into a short painful sleep.

They'd be back to full health in less than a fortnight.

He sighed.

The young solider turned to his superior.

"Sir? What are we to do with them?" The older man pondered or a moment and then replied.

"I'm not sure. But what I do know is that Sig. Bugiardini wants to deal with them personally." The young soldier nodded and they closed the cell door.

As they strolled through the corridor past the cell, the young soldier asked as many questions as was possible about the three bodies in the cell they were guarding.

"Who are they?" He looked up at the tall, muscular man beside him who chuckled.

"They are assassins." He said while ruffling the young soldier's hair. The boy gasped and stopped walking.

"You mean I help to catch assassins?" He asked surprised. The man nodded and the young soldier began to dance around the hall shouting out a little victory song.

Soon after, they began to talk of the Templar's plans to control Italy as a whole. This wasn't the most intelligent of places to discuss such matters, for one simple reason.

The supposed unconscious female assassins was awake and listening for any information that would help the assassins. For, she had no intention of staying in the cramped little cell any longer.

She could hear it in their voices- their weakness. She would be able to kill them herself, with no weapons, in a matter of seconds.

Then, a grunt came from behind her.

It was Ezio.

He was about to start mumbling before Alessandra lunged at him, covering his mouth with her hands. She grabbed his arm and twisted it so he would stay quiet. He whimpered and she twisted it harder. He writhed and twisted, trying to free himself from her grip, but she only hurt him more.

"Shut up and stop moving you fool!" She spat and he became still, both from the pain and from the shock.

This wasn't the Alessandra he was spending time with all week.

Then, he noticed where they were and stared dumbly at the corner, where laid a very banged up and burnt Giovanni Auditore, with only one hand.

Then, he fainted while still in Alessandra's grip.

She sighed and let go of his arm. This was definitely the beginning of the end for both Ezio's family and their friendship, and she would surely go back to being a desperate and solemn waste of space.

That is, if she didn't get killed by the Templars.

Then, the cell door opened and a very finely dressed man walked in, with a sickly wide smile on his face.

_'Bugiardini.' _She thought maliciously.

"Hello there my dear."


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N:So chapter seven is here!**

**AC2 is coming closer and closer (*squeal*)BUT there is a problem with my story. I've been trying to tie up the story with the new game's plot but it's difficult when I haven't seen it yet.**

**So imaginations will have to be used people! Hopefully it will be easy enough to connect them, I've been getting ideas from different trailers and that new Assassin's Creed:Lineage short movie.**

**R&R please! **

I can't really remember what happened.

Some sounds stayed in my mind.

Shouting.

Wood Creaking.

Women crying.

Ah........ I remember now.

The day was colder than any I'd ever experienced. The freezing air burnt my skin and I shivered. I ran helplessly through the streets, bashing into passer-bys with no apology. In any other case I would have apologised, but today, I was on a mission.

My mission, you ask?

Well, I guess the story goes back to when we were stuck in the cells of the Templars- men I was told were trying to seize power over Italy.

_'Templars..............Bastards.'_

After Sig. Bugiardini had visited us to tell us their plan for our demise, Alessandra explained her and my father's 'occupation'.

I can't say I wasn't shocked.

Alessandra had told me of her plan to escape. I remember it was quite dangerous and more than likely we would fail, but we had little else to live for other than to escape.

The great thing was, with the help of some men in white garments (whom I presumed correctly to be the assassins), we successfully escaped. And by we, I mean Alessandra and I.

My father was gone.

We begged and pleaded with the assassins to help rescue him but they dismissed it as a fools mission.

If that's so, then call me a fool.

Yes, I knew My father was an assassin.

Yes, I knew I was supposed to hate the assassins.

For God's sake, my only real friend turned out to be an assassin!

If I didn't accept it then, I'd have been friendless and fatherless.

So there I was. Running down the streets of Venice. Running to the stage where a hanging was taking place. My father's hanging.

The bitter smell of blood greeted me as I ran into the square- where every execution had taken place for a hundred years. I thought of all the times a son ran to save his father, and judging by the smell, how many times they had failed.

But I wasn't about to give in.

I saw my father's disparaged expression and almost lost all hope. His skin was burnt and bruised and judging by his eyes, he hand been crying for a considerable amount of time. His pathetic situation was the only motivation I had left in me.

I ran up and shouted to the guards (distracting them), hurling a knife Alessandra gave to me at the thick bloodied rope that hung around my father's neck.

But I missed. By an inch.

Before I knew it, the trap door in the stage opened and his body dropped at an alarming rate the the ground.

Hope was lost now.

I felt my whole world crumble. A burning sensation erupted in the pit of my stomach and I fell to the ground, hyperventilating.

Then, as the sadness began to intensify, the anger which had accumulated over the last few months boiled up and overcame me.

I was without purpose and worse, without sense.

I got to my feet and screamed to the man who ordered the execution, Sig. Bugiardini.

"I will kill you for this!" I shouted maliciously to him. I was held back by two guards from running at Bugiardini.

"You will die for this!" I wailed in such a manner for as long as my breath could take me.

For a moment, to my satisfaction, I could see the fear in his eyes, unlike any fear I had ever seen before.

Fear of death.

Then, Bugiardini smiled and before I knew it, a group of about twenty guards ran toward me.

I escaped with my life, but what had I to live for anymore?

The assassins offered me a place in their organisation, but I declined.

My father had told me a few days before, from his cell window, that I should join the assassins like him for my safety. I watched his frail and broken form leaning out through the cell bars. I was disgusted. I never really thought that I loved him as much as I really did. Until now.

I could barely take the sound of his voice, laden with the despair of his eventual demise. He told me to go to the house and take what was in a big wooden chest in his bedroom away. I was curious at first as to what was in there, but I soon realised that it was best if I didn't even look.

It seamed that this was the first sensible decision I had made, or so I thought.

As I left the cell for the night, I could hear the light sobbing behind me. The burning in my chest grew that night, and the hole formed wasn't filled for a long time.

I spent the night after his execution wandering along the empty streets of Florence.

The full moon shone down on the street as I walked hopelessly down the avenue. As I stopped at the corner I had two choices:

One: Go home and look in that box.

Two: Get so drunk I'd forget my own name.

The clouds moved over the moon and shrouded the street in darkness: I had made my choice.

It would have been too dark to go home anyway.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Hello people, I have returned!**

**Obviously now that AC2 is released and I know how the story ends, it has become difficult to tie it all up, so here's my best try. Please tell me if you think I've ruined the story, or if it makes real sense!**

**R&R please, please please! **

Ezio sat in the corner staring hazily at the woman across the street. His heavy drinking the night before was starting to wear off and the hangover was kicking in.

She was packing vegetables into a small, broken wooden box. He knew they wouldn't fit.

_'Dumb woman, they won't stay there!"_ His mind raged. He realised what he was doing was childish, but he didn't care anymore. As far as he was concerned, all he wanted to do was rot and die.

_'Papa.' _He sobbed and threw back another mouthful of whatever was in the bottle he stole from a cargo boat that morning. It tasted good. As it slid down his hoarse throat it burned like fire. He smiled, he deserved this after what he let happen to his father. He cursed and closed his eyes as hot salty tears flowed into his mouth.

Then, as the image of his father the day hey went shopping in Florence appeared in his mind, so did the image of his mother and sister. He bit his lip. What happened to them? Giovanni had told him that they went to Rome to buy new dresses, but now he knew that they were really fleeing the city. He opened his eyes and looked into the sky. He grimaced and more tears flowed out. He knew he would never see them again. Never.

_'They're probably dead.'_ The reality was grim.

He opened his eyes again and looked down at his clothes. They were sweaty, dirty and spattered with blood from when the bomb exploded. He sighed and began to play with the ring on his finger. It was his father's. Some man named Marco gave it to him, which frankly disgusted him to the core. What kind of gesture is a reminder that it will forever be Ezio's fault for the death of his own father?

Then, he heard a voice call his name.

"Ezio?" She sounded shocked. 'She' turned out to be Alessandra, who was visiting him every day trying to plead with him to join the assassins.

"What?" He snapped and she scoffed. She knelt beside him and touched his arm affectionately.

"You can't stay like this, come with me and I'll help you. Besides, you need to get your burns treated before you get an infection." She sounded sincere enough. But what did he care, his life was over now. He grimaced like he had tasted something horrible.

"I'm not going anywhere with you, you assassin bitch." She gasped quietly, which was followed by bitter silence. He heard her stand back up. Then, he felt hot saliva hit his face and drip down his neck, stinging the burn wounds that ran down his torso.

She spat on him.

His patience finally broke.

As she turned to leave him he stood up, and in one fast and sloppy movement, he smashed the bottle down on her head with all his strength, ripping open the skin there and sending her into a deep concussion. She whimpered and fell limply to the ground. As he watched her, he guessed she would get back up.

She stayed still.

He began to panic. All of the pain that he held up for the last week poured out in bitter, angry tears. He shook her limb body in an effort to wake her but she remained still. Blood from her cut ran down her face and into her mouth.

Ezio picked her up and ran panicked and sobbing toward the house where he had first met the assassins. As he entered, everyone in the room stared shocked at Alessandra's limp body on Ezio's back.

One assassin which Ezio remembered as Marco ran toward him and took Alessandra's body.

"What happened?" He barked at Ezio.

"I told her not to come back!" He shouted back like a scared child. Marco turned to Ezio with a look of malice on his face that could kill a man.

"You did this?" He asked infuriated. Ezio stepped back.

"Yes." Ezio said and realised how shameful his act really was. His cursed himself mentally and went to apologise to Marco. But he didn't get the chance. Marco grabbed him roughly and shoved him against the wall. He gripped Ezio's neck and growled fiercely at him. Ezio wheezed and scrambled, trying to free himself from Marco's voce-like grip.

"All she has been doing is trying to help you, and all you can do in return is give her a concussion!?" He pushed Ezio against the wall and kicked him hard between the legs. Ezio crumpled to the ground in pain, gritting his teeth and whimpering.

Marco left him there and went to take Alessandra to the infirmary.

Meanwhile, the Master walked into the room. He looked over at Ezio who was lying on the ground breathing heavily, no longer in physical agony.

The Master walked over and kicked his back lightly.

"What's you name boy?" He asked irritated that some street urchin had stumbled across his brotherhood.

"Ezio Auditore." Ezio knew he was probably a wanted criminal, but he didn't care if this old man turned him in. He heard the man gasp.

"You are Giovanni's son?" He asked shocked. Ezio grunted and got to his feet lazily. He looked at The Master who was smiling maliciously.

"Boy, I want to show you something."

* * * * * * *

Ezio looked at the letter with shock. He could feel his father's presence as he read the words. He could tell by the writing that Giovanni wrote this a long time before he died:

_Ezio,_

_I know that you are wondering why I never told you this before, but I felt that you would have a better life outside of the Assassins. But now I realise that it is in your blood. It is your purpose. Promise me that I did not die in vain. I do not want you to get revenge, but to find out the truth._

_Don't worry, you'll understand soon._

_Ti amo, mio figlio,_

_Papa._

Ezio read the letter over an over again, he couldn't quite get his head around it all. His father must have known that this would happen, and that Ezio would become an assassin. Ezio grimaced. Then, he felt the Master's hand pick up his necklace, the one he bought when life was good.

A little tear formed in Ezio's eye. His stomach burnt like acid- his sadness growing every hour.

The Master inspected the necklace and murmured.

You know," he said, deep in thought, "this is a pendant from the original brotherhood of assassins in the holy land." Ezio looked at him apathetically and sighed.

"I see that you are not in the mood for stories" The Master said sadly.

"Ezio, if you are ever to realise your true purpose then you must join the ranks of men that came before you and become an assassin." Ezio nodded realising this old man was correct, it was his father's wishes and he couldn't deny them.

"Go to you home and retrieve you father's things." Ezio nodded.

"But what about Alessandra." Ezio asked carefully, he wasn't sure if the Master would react badly to him asking.

"She is still unconscious, but you may see her before you go." Ezio- satisfied that she would be okay- left in a hurry to get his father's things before anything happened to them.

He ran through the lamp lit streets in a flustered rush, trying to understand all of this. He could have never realised that this was his destiny, but who was he to complain- he was alive, and thankful for it.

He reached the house and walked in cautiously- there was nobody there. He opened the door and peered in. Her gasped as he saw the shivering form of his mother and sister under the table.

"Mama, Claudia, what are you doing here?" The flinched for a moment before realising that it was Ezio. The got out from under the table and he hugged them tightly.

"Ezio, we never left for Rome- we were delayed and then all _this_ happened. "Claudia said very shakily. Ezio had to find a way to keep them safe. Then, he thought of the assassins hideout, it would be the perfect place for them to stay.

"Follow me, I know where you can be safe."

It took only twenty minutes to get there the second time, as Ezio had almost memorised the way there, for the very reason that he was going there now- the protection of his family.

As they neared the building Ezio saw smoke rising high into the sky and heard screams of people rushing from an apparent fire. Ezio then realised what was really happening.

"NO!" He shouted and ran like crazy toward the hideout. He turned to corner and stopped dead in his tracks- the building was engulfed in flames. There was not a single person outside the building that looked like an assassin.

He fell to his knees. His father, now an entire order of assassins. He stood up and turned to his mother and sister - with only one alternative left.

"We have to flee Florence. We can go to uncle Mario's villa." The two women looked shocked at his rash decision, but they nodded and ran as fast as their legs could carry them to the city gates.

As he reached the city gate, he looked back into the city of his youth, the city where he was born. He didn't know if he would ever return, but he knew that he couldn't stay, not when he had a sister and mother to protect.

He took one last pained look at the pillar of smoke coming from the assassins' hideout and turned for his uncle's villa, resigned to the fact his life would never be the same.

* * * * * *

The world was a blur; it was near impossible to make out where she was. Her head throbbed in pain and her side felt wet and cold. She put her hand to her side and grimaced as pain shot through her entire body. It felt like being stabbed by a thousand daggers. She tried to see what was causing the pain, but her vision was still too blurry. All she could see was the white of her uniform, and the red of the blood.

_"Damn, how did I get here?"_

She sat up slowly and squinted, trying to see what all the moving blobs were. She saw a white blob move closer to her with each passing second. Her heart began to race. What is it?_ Who_ is it?

She blinked and her vision slowly began to clear up. She saw who the blob was and sighed in relief. He smiled reassuringly and picked her up. She felt the pain in her side intensify, but she ignored it, she was safe now.

"Where are we?" She croaked, but she only saw his lips moving, no sound coming from them. She tried to lift her hands to her head but they wouldn't move. Her mind screamed in fear and she began to cry uncontrollably. She shook her head

"I can't hear yo-"

The pain in her head exploded and she fell from his arms. She saw the floor become closer and closer and then her whole body ached unbearably. She screamed as the world became blurry again. She shouted but he was gone again. Her breathing picked up and she began to panic. She started to scream,

"Help me! PLEASE!" The world began to fade away and she no longer tried to scream for help, for she couldn't.

_"I am going to die...."_

Then, as the last remnants of colour faded from her vision she heard a familiar sound, a familiar voice, calling her. She couldn't reply, even though she'd give the world to be able to.

_"I'm coming Orlando." _She thought tragically. Her soul burnt with sadness and her mind wailed in bitter remorse.

Then, the fear set in.

_'No, I don't want to die!'_

It gripped her whole being, she felt like a different person. She felt weak and defenceless. She had gone from hunter to hunted. If she was able to cry, she would howl for hours in painful agony. Nothing had ever felt like this before, the terror was unbearable.

Her breathing picked up for a moment before slowly dying down until it was so faint that she was inches from death.

She groaned and slipped unwillingly into a deep slumber.......

It didn't take long for her to realise that she wasn't dead. For what seamed like an eternity, she heard voices around her, and felt very intense pain in the form of burning. She wasn't dead, not mentally anyway.

But if she didn't wake up soon, she probably would die.

Then, one glorious day, she opened her eyes. The room looked like the inside of a small villa in the countryside. The light spilled in the window, blinding her a little. She squinted and soon got used to the light.

The door opened and she watched as Marco walked in. Then, she remembered what had happened. She had been beaten unconscious by Ezio, and then woke to a fire in the hideout. It was Marco who had saved her, although she had fallen unconscious long before she left the building. She smiled at him, although he didn't try to hide the fact that he was bitterly sad.

And the worst thing was, she knew why.

"Luzio, he never got out did he?" She asked warily and Marco nodded silently. His eyes filled with tears up and they embraced warmly. They stayed in the same place for maybe ten minutes, until Alessandra leaned back, nervous about the answer to her next question.

"How long have I been out?" She asked and Marco sighed awkwardly.

"Maybe you should wait-"

"No. I want to know now." She interrupted firmly and Marco sighed. It wasn't good.

"Three months. Actually, for a while I thought you were dead and that I was imagining that you were breathing. That was, until you started talking i your sleep this morning."

"Don't worry." He reassured her, seeing the panic on her face, "You were only talking gibberish anyway." She relaxed a little.

Then, what he had first said actually hit her - three whole months.

She couldn't speak. She was, utterly speechless.

Three months asleep. It felt like an eternity, yes, but she still only expected it to be a week at the most. She knew that everything had changed, but it was always worse when you weren't there to see it change. It was almost like waking from a coma after ten years, realising that everything that made your life before was gone.

"How...I...is-" She wasn't able to form coherent sentences, but Marco understood well enough to know what she meant.

"They found us out, the Templars, that is. They came to the Master and bribed him to let them kill us. It was all a sick plot from the beginning. I would have gone back to kill the Master and the other Templars, but they're looking for us, and they're a lot better equipped than us at the moment." As he spoke, one person suddenly appeared in Alessandra's mind.

"Where's Ezio, is he asleep in another room?" Marco looked away awkwardly. She feared the absolute worst.

"I don't know. Since the accident, he just disappeared."


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: I haven't written anything in ages, mostly due to exams, but also because I have had a little writer's block recently. So, if the story sounds a little strange, then you know why!**

**As always, I do love to hear from readers, even just a hello!**

**Anyhoo, please enjoy:**

**(p.s. first half is from Ezio's p.o.v)**

Time heals all things...

If that's so then why do I still think about it?

Sigh.

I sat on the top of the villa's roof and looked out onto the bustling streets of Monteriggioni, watching as people walked in and out through the massive stone walls. My life had certainly been nothing less than exciting since that day. The assassinations, and then the strange talk with that 'thing' in Rome.

It was the most bizzare thing that had ever happened to me, and not knowing what it was about makes it all the harder. I must find out who the 'Desmond' she was talking about is, he has to be somewhere in Italy, although, his name doesn't sound very Italian.

It was all so frustrating.

It had been roughly twenty years since my father's death, and since that young girl that I had beaten had died in a fire. I thought many times how different my life would have been if she had survived. But I remember what uncle Mario had said to me about it:

"Living in the past will only cause you grief, Ezio. You couldn't have stopped your father's execution, and neither could you have prevented that fire." He had said. I believed him, to a certain degree, but the guilt of causing the death of someone innocent was something that I found hard to escape. It was against the very creed I lived by.

Then, I stood and climbed down into the study, where Leonardo was painting. I stood behind him and observed the masterpiece coming together on the canvas.

"I will never understand how you paint like that, Leonardo." I said with a smile. Leonardo had been a great friend since I first met him in Florence. I usually never left the villa anymore without telling him where I was going, or asking him to accompany me.

"Ah, Ezio. Come stai, amico mio?" He asked cheerfully and I sighed. He was easy to talk to, so I decided that a trouble shared is a trouble halved.

"Not good. I keep thinking about Alessandra. I can't forget what happened." He walked up to me and put a reassuring hand on my shoulder.

"I think you need to return to Florence." He said softly.

"Florence, why?" I was genuinely confused by his suggestion, although I had an idea where he was going with it.

"Because you need to put this to rest, once and for all." He said and I knew he was right. He was a genius after all - he was always right, even when I disagreed with him.

"Yeah, I know. But when?" I asked him, and I heard the hopelessness in my voice. It was difficult to feel yourself loose control, and I had no intention of it happening again. My family's death had been hard enough on me to last a lifetime.

"As soon as we can." He said and put down his brush.

"Is now a good time?" He asked cheerily and I sighed. For me, **now** was never a good time to do any kind of soul-searching, mostly because I rarely liked the results.

"Yeah, I suppose." I answered hesitantly.

"That's the spirit, sure, what have you got to loose?" He asked and I scoffed.

_My sanity _I thought rudely.

* * *

We arrived in a small farming village near Florence a few hours later. We had to stop because the carriage practically broke down while we were in it. Leonardo was angry, to say the least.

"That _bastardo _charged me extra for this coach because it was 'of the highest quality'. I'll ruin him! He'll never sell another carriage as long as I live!" I chuckled and walked passed him toward a small villa by the road, I was sure that someone there would help us.

As Leonardo's cursing faded into the distance I knocked lightly on the villa door. For a moment nobody answered and I was about to leave when the door swung open, smashing into my face. A hand grasped mine very roughly and pulled me into the house. As quickly as I was pulled forward I was being pushed backwards into the cold stone wall. I fell onto the ground rather shaken up. I looked up into the face of a young girl with the same weapons that I had, the _exact _same ones - hidden blade and all.

She held out her sword against my neck, pressing so lightly against my Adam's apple. I gulped and felt the cool metal restricting my breathing. I smiled sheepishly as she looked me up and down. Then, a voice came from behind her.

"Don't worry Maria, he looks like he's one of us." She lowered her blade and I stood up. I followed suit and brushed the dust off my clothes. I grumbled at the tear that went through the sleeve from all the pulling and pushing.

_This is an expensive outfit to repair..._ I grumbled internally.

Then, before I could complain out loud I saw the woman who had saved me from being decapitated. I couldn't hold in my surprise, it burst out of me in a huge gasp.

I couldn't believe it, standing in front of me was a ghost, a woman who was supposed to be dead. But, thank the lord, she was alive.

Alessandra was alive.

She smiled and walked down the marble staircase to me. She opened her arms for a embrace and I gladly returned the favour. She chuckled at my supposed face but I just could control myself.

She was alive all along!

"Non ti ho visto in un istante Ezio." She joked and I stepped back from her, overcome with an almost bone-crushing relief. She smiled and motioned for me to follow her into a nearby room. It looked like some sort of office which was decorated with several artifacts, including some antique weapons, all bearing the assassins symbol. It seemed that there were even more assassins than I first thought. But why did they not contact me, why didn't they reveal themselves before? It didn't make any sense.

"Ezio, I need your help." Her voice had changed rom the warm friendly tone she had used in the foyer, to a cold calculating tone - the voice of a killer. It was strange to hear her speak like that, but it seemed that she had endured the same hardships that did over the past few years.

"Of course, what is it?" I asked, worried that if this woman - a powerful assassin when I only realized my lineage - needed help, something was definitely not right.

"It seems that the Templars are more widespread than I had once expected. We have assassins in many countries dealing with their own problems, but it seems that the Templars are not finished with Italy yet. There is one left, and if we kill him, his goons will simply disperse into the air without another word. Are you up for another assassination?" She asked and I sighed happily. Even though my life was difficult, and he learnt to hate murder in all its forms, I couldn't have been happier to hear this. I was excited that my life hadn't become meaningless quite yet. I had a sneaking suspicion that I would never solve the mystery of the trance woman in the vault in St. Peter's Basilica. This, would have to ease my boredom and frustration for now.

"Okay, tell me where he will be and I will finish him." I said confidently. I was no longer some loud and clumsy amateur, I was a master assassin and even though a long process would be more enjoyable, I would do it as the professional that I had become, quickly and quietly.

"It's not that simple, he's practically disappeared since the Templars lost control in Rome. We'd have to spend a long tim tracking him down." She pointed out and I could hardly control a smile. It had been a rather uneventful year since the 'Rome incident', so this was just the kick I needed.

"Of course, whatever it takes." I smiled and she returned with a smile that put my guilt as ease. She was alive, and seemed to harbor no grud-

Her fist connected roughly with my face. fell back, hitting the cold marble floor with a thud. I grunted and looked up to Alessandra, who was harboring what looked to be a very deep-rooted grudge.

"THAT'S for almost killing me. By the way, you can stay in the guest rooms, we'll leave in two days when Marco returns from Florence. He should have more information." I sighed and stood up, wondering what trouble Leonardo could have gotten into by now. He was awfully gifted at getting into trouble.

* * *

After finding Leonardo pleading with a woman on the road to pose for a sketch, Ezio brought the artist in to see his old acquaintance.

"Wow, that really is strange." Leonardo was staring at Alessandra with a weird look on his face. It was as if he was disgusted. Ezio didn't want to know what he was thinking.

Although, Ezio did remember him admitting he used to like Alessandra, but now he only hangs around with men - Ezio had never seen him take interest in a woman since then.

_'He's probably better off,'_ Ezio surmised, _'women can be so temperamental.'_

"Well if it isn't the great Ezio Auditore!" A sardonic voice came from the door of the guest bedroom. Ezio turned to see the face of a man who did not look happy to see him. How could he forget their last conversation, it was heated, to say the least.

"Marco, I don't want-"Ezio began but was stopped by an explosion of pain in his nose, brought on by Marco's steel-like fist. Ezio moaned in pain while holding his nose. He stood up, eyeing Marco angrily, his whole body shaking in anger.

"If you want to fight, then I'll oblige, figlio di puttana!" He spat and ran at Marco, his fists begging to smash into his smug-looking face. He was inches from Marco when he grabbed Ezio's arm and spun him in the opposite direction, without even breaking a sweat. Ezio fell against the wall and used it to propel himself back at Marco, sending a rough kick into the older assassins' stomach. Marco flew across the room, smashing against the wall. For a moment, he looked unconscious, but his eyes opened i one quick motion, still focused intently on Ezio. He wasn't about to lose this fight too easily.

Just as he stood up he felt a hand against his chest. It was Alessandra, and she didn't look happy.

"I'm the only one aloud to harbor any grudge here. Ezio didn't start the fire, and I don't care what happened back then. We have work to do, Marco." Marco hesitated for a moment, weighing up his options before nodding in agreement. He always trusted Alessandra's judgement, and if she wanted him to focus on work, he would.

"Ezio, it seems that things have become a little more complicated." She turned to the younger assassin and he nodded.

"Marco has heard that our 'Master' survived the attack on our stronghold, mostly because he started it." Ezio gasped. He remembered the Master urging Ezio to become an assassin, he seemed to be very against the Templars. But, then again, it's always the one you least suspect.

"So, we have to kill him as well?" He asked, feeling the fatigue creep up on him. He had never been a good sleeper, so he was always tired.

"Yes." She replied bitterly and stormed out of the room rather randomly. Ezio frown in confusion and looked to Marco, who didn't look like he was up for any kind of talking.

"If you're wondering, Ezio, she was the Master's favourite student. She and him were close. Also-" He leaned in, as if he was telling a secret.

"- she was his daughter."

* * *

**A/N: Okay I should explain the whole 'Leonardo was disgusted with Alessandra' thing. Speculation surrounds the claims that Da Vinci was gay, but I decided to have him like a woman, the realize he prefers men. I hope that explains that (although you may have already guessed that, I just wanted to avoid confusion.)**


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